Engineering Wonders of the World
Volume I

282 ENGINEERING WONDERS OF THE WORLD. London. Mr. Cyrus Field had reserved £75,000 for American subscription, but this confidence in his compatriots proved to be altogether misplaced. The result has thus been re- counted by his brother : “ He (Cyrus Field) thought that one-fourth of the stock should be held in this country (the United States) ; and he did not doubt, from the eagerness with which three-fourths had been taken in. Eng- land, that the remainder would be at once subscribed in America.” In point of fact, it was only after much trouble that sub- scribers were obtained in the States for a total of twenty-seven shares, or less than one-twelfth of the total capital! Thus, not- withstanding the professed enthusiasm, the faith of the American in the project proved to be strictly limited—in any case, he did not rise to the occasion. The first chaiiman was Sir William Brown, whilst Mr. J. W. Brett became an ordinary director. Two other names may be specially referred to as destined in different ways to have the greatest influence in the subsequent development of submarine telegraphy. Mr. (afterwards Sir John) Pender, who was then a “ Magnetic ” director, afterwards took a leading part in the vast extensions that have followed in the Mediterranean, India, China, Australasia, and the Cape, besides several of the subsequent Atlantic lines. Up to the time of his death he was chairman of about a dozen, more or less allied, cable companies, represent- ing thirty millions of capital, and organized mainly through his foresight and business ability. Then, again, Professor William Thom- son of Glasgow University was a tower of scientific strength on the board. He had been from the start a firm believer in the Atlantic line. Mr. (afterwards Sir Charles) Bright became engineer-in-chief, with Mr. Wildman White- house as electrician. Mr. Whitehouse had conducted a number of independent electrical experiments, having been for some time in- terested in the project, though formerly a physician by profession. Mr. Cyrus Field undertook the duties of general manager. From the outset the engineer-in-chief had to deal with wild and undeveloped suggestions, mainly from “ inventors ” and amateurs in the art, who desired to reap benefit from the scheme. The Fallacies fallacy most frequently intro- Curious , , xk x 4.k i.i Suggestions, duced was that the cable would become suspended in the water at a certain depth. Naturally, the pressure in- creases with the depth on all sides of a cable (or anything else) in its descent through, the sea ; but as practically everything on earth is more compressible than water, it is obvious that the iron wire, yarn, gutta-percha, and copper conductor forming the cable must be more and more compressed as they descend. Thus, the cable constantly increases in density in going down, while the equal bulk of the water surrounding it continues to have very nearly the same specific gravity as at the surface. Without this feature in water the hydraulic press would be impossible. To obviate the above non-existent diffi- culty, it was gravely proposed to festoon the cable across, at a given maximum depth, between buoys and floats or even parachutes, at which ships might take call, hook on, and talk telegraphically to shore ! Others, again, proposed to apply gummed cotton to the outside of the cable. The idea was that the gum (or glue) would gradually dissolve, and so let the cable down “ quietly ” ! Some, again, actually went so far as to take out patents for converting the laying vessel into a huge factory, with a view to making the cable on board in one continuous length, and submerging it during the process of manufacture! One naval expert assured the company that “ no other machinery was necessary for paying-out the cable than a handspike to stop its egress.” Finally, a certain critic appeared to imagine that the method of signalling was that of