THE ATLANTIC CABLE.

West Coast Times, Issue 62, 26 October 1865, Page 2

THE ATLANTIC CABLE.

(from the times, august 18.) We are happy to be able to announce the safety of the Great Eastern, notwithstanding the loss of the cable on the 2nd of this month. The Great Eastern sailed from Valentia, after making the spite c with the shore end, on the 23rd of July, and continued on her voyage to latitucle 51 degrees 25 minutes, longitude 39 degrees 6 minutes, being 1063 "miles from Valentia and * 600 miles from Heart's Content, Trinity Bay, having paid out 1212 miles of cable, when tho cable parted on the 2nd of August, at 12*35 pm., in a soundings 3900 yarels, under the following circumstances :—: — A partial loss of insulation having been discovered, tho ship was stopped to recover that portion of the cable in which the fault lay, electrical tests placing it probably within six miles. The cable was passed from the stern to the bow of tho ship for this purpose, and, after getting in two miles of cable, the fault being still overboard, tho cable broke about ten yards inboard of the wheel at the bow, having been injured by chafing on the stern of tho ship, Two previous faults had been discovered, the first in soundings about 1000 yards, and the second in about 4100 yards, and had been successfully recovered and made good ; in the first case ten miles, and in the second case two and a half miles of cable wore hauled in.

After the cable parted a grapnel, with two and a half nautical miles of ropo, was lowered down, the ship boing placed so as to drift over the line of cable. Tho cable was hooked on tho 3rd, and when 2200 yards of tho ropo had boon hauled in, a swivol in tho latter gave way, and 2800 yards of tho ropo wore lost, tho cable having beon lifted 1200 yards from tho bottom.

On the 4th a buoy, with flag and ball, was moored with 500 yards of ropo to mark the place. It is in latitudo 5 1 '35, longitude 38*4230. From the 4th fogs and adverse winds prevented a further attompt until the 7th which was then made nearer tho ond of tho cable, and was unsuccessful, from tho same craiso, when tho cable had been lifted about 1000 yards. Another bueiy was hero

placed in latitude 51*28' 36", longitude 38-56' 9".

A third attempt was made on the 10th Which failed on account of the grapnel chain having fouled the flukes of tho grapnel. The grapnel and last 800 yards of rope came up covered with ooze,

A fourth attempt Was made on the 11th, at 3 p.m., which also failed through the breaking of the grapnel rope, when the cable had been raised COO yards from the bottom. Having now exhausted tho stock of rope, it became absolutely necessary to return to England for more and stronger tackle. All well on board. The ship behaved admirably,^ the picking-up machinery was defective, and may be said to have caused the final failure.

The following are the practical conclusions unanimously arrived at by those engaged in various capacities in the expedition : —

1. That the steamship Great Eastern, from her size and consequent steadiness, together wth the better control obtained over her by having both the paddles and screw, renders it possible and safe to lay an Atlantic cable in any weather.

2. That the paying- N out machinery, constructed for the purpose by Messrs S. Canning and Clifford, worked perfectly, and can be confidently relied on.

3. That the insulation of the guttapercha covered conductor improved when submerged to more than double what it had been before starting, and has proved itself to be the best insulated cable ever manufactured, and many times higher than the standard required by the contract. The cause of the two faults which wero recovered was in each case a perforation of the gutta percha through to the proper conductor by a piece of iron wire found sticking in the cable. Electrically, the third fault was analogous to the first. The difficulty may be provided against in future. 4. That nothing has occurred to create the least doubt in the minds of all those engaged in the expedition of the practicability of successfully laying and working an Atlantic telegraph cable, but, on tho contrary, their confidence has been largely increased by the confidence obtained on this voyage. 5.. That were the Great Eastern steamship supplied with sufficiently strong tackle and hauling-in machinery for a depth of 4000 or 5000 yards, there is little or no doubt of the possibility of recovering the lost end of the cable, and completing the line already about two-thirds laid.

The Great Eastern proceeded direct to Sheerness. All well on board.

She reports having parted compnny with H.M.S. Sphynx a few days after starting. The weather was for the most part very calm, but often foggy and rainy. A stiff breeze blew on two days, but although the sea washed over the Terrible, scarcely any motion was observable on board the Great Eastern, her greatest roll being 7£ degrees, and pitching 1 1 £ degrees. The cable paid out beautifully, and owing to its diameter and lightness the strain required to prevent the too rapid egress never exceeded 14 cwt. Its angle with the horizon during the paying out rarely exceeded 9£ degrees. No difficulty whatever was experienced in mooring the buoys in the deepest water, two having been left behind moored with pieces of cable that had been picked up from a depth of two miles. Ono of them rode out a stiff summer gale, the position after nine daya being unchanged. Captain Moriarty's chronometers found the true position of the ship to within a fraotion of a mile.

The Terrible has sailed to Newfoundland to coal.