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Breakage of submarine telegraph cables
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Breakage of Submarine Telegraph Cables.
Breakage of Submarine Telegraph Cables.--Sir William Thomson and Mr. F. J. Brainwell, to whom was intrusted the examination of the broken ends and the recovered section of the recent fractures of the direct United States Co.'s cable, have made their report. There were two fractures, cue on Sept. 27th, 1875, in 70 fathoms, and the other on Dee. 10~h, 1875, in 120 fathoms. They found the ends of the wire, of which the cable is composed, tapered down, as is always the ease in good ductile metal. There was no evidence of decay or of an imperfect condition of the cable, nor of the cable chafing against the rock or crushing ; and they can come to no conclusion but that the fracture occurred in a perfect cable, though thoroughly sound metal, and that they were due to that metal having been torn asunder, under violent tensile strain. They further say, in regard to the first fracture, that this violent strain must have been caused by an implement, such as the arm of a grapnel or the fluke of an anchor, which, after coming in contact with the cable, was run along, driving the serving into the hemp, until there was formed a thick mass around the cable for a length of 13 inches. This mass finally stopped the progress of the implement, as is shown by its marks on the serving, and the breaking strain then commenced. About 12 knots of the cable were recovered, and this was subjected to examination and test, and was found to be in excellent condition and free from fault. It was also submitted to test of breaking strain, and its power to resist tensile strain was placed at 7 tons. This report offers no satisfactory explanation of how such a strain came to be applied, but concludes that it could not have been accidentally produced by fishing vessels in pursuit of their ordinary calling. The steamer Faraday has also succeeded in picking up the fractured ends of the New Hampshire-Torbay cable, broken on Jan. 23d, 1876, at a depth of nearly 100 fathoms, and the representatives of the company state that the fracture presents the strongest evidence of having been produced by cutting with art axe or hatchet, after i~aving been raised by an anchor ; but whether this was done from malice, or in self-defense by a vessel under stress of weather, remains to be proven. In any view of the subject, there seems to be a necessity of some international law regulating the actions and responsibility of vessels jn such cases, and to settle the question of jurisdiction in matters relating to submarine cables. K.
Breakage of Submarine Telegraph Cables.
Breakage of Submarine Telegraph Cables.--Sir William Thomson and Mr. F. J. Brainwell, to whom was intrusted the examination of the broken ends and the recovered section of the recent fractures of the direct United States Co.'s cable, have made their report. There were two fractures, cue on Sept. 27th, 1875, in 70 fathoms, and the other on Dee. 10~h, 1875, in 120 fathoms. They found the ends of the wire, of which the cable is composed, tapered down, as is always the ease in good ductile metal. There was no evidence of decay or of an imperfect condition of the cable, nor of the cable chafing against the rock or crushing ; and they can come to no conclusion but that the fracture occurred in a perfect cable, though thoroughly sound metal, and that they were due to that metal having been torn asunder, under violent tensile strain. They further say, in regard to the first fracture, that this violent strain must have been caused by an implement, such as the arm of a grapnel or the fluke of an anchor, which, after coming in contact with the cable, was run along, driving the serving into the hemp, until there was formed a thick mass around the cable for a length of 13 inches. This mass finally stopped the progress of the implement, as is shown by its marks on the serving, and the breaking strain then commenced. About 12 knots of the cable were recovered, and this was subjected to examination and test, and was found to be in excellent condition and free from fault. It was also submitted to test of breaking strain, and its power to resist tensile strain was placed at 7 tons. This report offers no satisfactory explanation of how such a strain came to be applied, but concludes that it could not have been accidentally produced by fishing vessels in pursuit of their ordinary calling. The steamer Faraday has also succeeded in picking up the fractured ends of the New Hampshire-Torbay cable, broken on Jan. 23d, 1876, at a depth of nearly 100 fathoms, and the representatives of the company state that the fracture presents the strongest evidence of having been produced by cutting with art axe or hatchet, after i~aving been raised by an anchor ; but whether this was done from malice, or in self-defense by a vessel under stress of weather, remains to be proven. In any view of the subject, there seems to be a necessity of some international law regulating the actions and responsibility of vessels jn such cases, and to settle the question of jurisdiction in matters relating to submarine cables. K.