SARDINIA -BoNA DEEP-SEA CABLE. 163 



Sardinian corvette, which was to accompany the expe- 

 dition and take us to Bona , where the steam - ship 

 laden with the cable awaited us. It was an interesting 



o 



company which met on board the war-ship. Besides 

 the English contractors and cable manufacturers. Mr. 

 Newall and Mr. Liddell, there were on board several 

 Italian savants, telegraph officials, and naval officers, 

 among them the learned admiral Lamarmora, a very 

 amiable and well - instructed officer, brother of the 

 well-known General Lamarmora: further several French 

 telegraph officials, who were commissioned by their 

 government to be present at the laying of the cable, 

 in particular the well-known engineer Delamarche. 



Already on the passage to the island of Sardinia, 

 which was favoured by gloriously calm weather, the 

 party discussed the methods which should be adopted 

 in laying the cable, in order to avoid the failure of 

 previous attempts. Messrs. Newall and Liddell declared 

 that in laying their wire to the Crimea they had 

 found it best to proceed quickly, and let the cable 

 run out without check, when it would sink slowly to 

 the bottom without any strain. They had indeed for 

 precaution's sake provided a powerful brake-wheel, to 

 regulate the speed of the cable, but that would hardly 

 be necessary if the ship was going fast. This theory 

 of Mr. Liddell was strongly opposed by M. Delamarche, 

 who had been present at the unfortunate attempts of 

 Mr. Brett, and had now adopted the theory, that the 

 cable must perforce assume the form of a catenary curve 



in deep water, and under any circumstances break. 



n* 



