116 A SAGA OF THE SEAS 
the whole is held together and bound with the same wishes, 
projects, and interests.” It was the custom of the time to in- 
dulge in grandiose orations and to build huge air castles from 
maps and prospectuses. 
Collins himself declared grandly in a lecture in New York: 
“America and Europe are to be united in the gentle bands of 
iron fillets, while Old Mother Asia stands bridesmaid to the 
distant couple.” In his travels through wild parts of Siberia, 
he imagined himself a future potentate in the Amoor region. 
He talked of Marco Polo and Genghis Khan. 
To anticipate a little, Collins’ project was well under way 
in 1866 and about three million dollars had been spent when 
Cyrus Field finally laid a successful cable. ‘The news came like 
a clap of thunder. ‘The construction crews on the overland line 
in Alaska were summarily discharged. The wire on hand was 
sold to the Indians for suspension bridges and fish-nets, and 
the green-glass insulators supplied them with drinking-cups 
for years. Collins’ dreams of Oriental magnificence and 
splendor crashed in ruins. 
It is evident that Field’s project for an Atlantic cable be- 
tween Ireland and Newfoundland was not the only possibility 
discussed during this period. Other ambitious men were plan- 
ning and trying different routes and methods. It is interesting 
to note that some of these routes suggested for inter-conti- 
nental telegraphs became, several generations later, the routes 
for aviators steering, as the crow flies, to economize distance 
while making occasional stops to refuel and rest. The New- 
foundland-Ireland route, in particular, has proved popular 
for air flights as well as for cables. 
The British and American governments were willing to 
encourage any likely cable scheme. Each promoter had his 
own spokesmen in official circles. ‘That Field was the one 
finally successful was due to the directness and simplicity of 
his attack, coupled with his persuasive and organizing ability. 
