THE LAYING OF SUBMARINE CABLES. 145 



originally built for carrying 5,000 nautical miles of hempen 

 cable, so that with the heavier types at present in use the 

 tanks are only about half full when the vessel is loaded to her 

 " Plimsoll." The largest tank has over 70,000 cubic feet capa- 

 city, or about 67,000 cubic feet exclusive of the cone. The 

 coiling space to a height of 29ft. is 61,221 cubic feet, which 

 would hold over 2,000 nautical miles of deep-sea cable, but it 

 is not usual to load up the tanks more than to a depth of 16 Or 

 18ft., or about half full, except for cables of a light and bulky 

 type. The cable machinery for this vessel was constructed 

 to the drawings of the late Professor Fleeming Jenkin, F.R.S. 



Of the cables manufactured by the above Company at Silver- 

 town, the light intermediate type has a capacity of about 40 

 cubic feet per naut, and occupies about 46 when coiled ; the 

 heavy intermediate has about 58 cubic feet per naut and 78 as 

 coiled; and the shou-end type has about 185 cubic feet per 

 naut and 230 when coiled. 



When carrying 6,390 tons the mean draught of the " Silver- 

 town " is 28ft., and with the load of 6,811 tons alluded to 

 above her draught was 27ft. forward and 29ft. 6in. aft. The 

 coal bunkers on board have a combined capacity of 1,300 tons, 

 besides which over 1,000 tons can be stowed in the fore hold. 

 With such a stock of fuel this vessel can steam great distances 

 and remain continuously at work without coaling for months 

 if necessary. When ready for sea for laying the cable between 

 St. Louis, Senegal, and Pernambuco, she had 2,160 nauts of 

 mixed cable on board, including the shore-ends, representing 

 a dead weight of about 5,000 tons. And when on the Central 

 and South American expedition she carried 4,881 tons of cable, 

 1,660 tons of coal. 111 tons of buoys, chains, cable-gear, and 

 office and telegraph fittings, and 159 tons of provisions and 

 water, making a total of 6,811 tons. This weight of cable 

 represented a length of 2,370 nauts, the same vessel having 

 carried as much as 2,600 nauts on one trip. 



The cable-laying ship "Faraday," owned by Messrs. Siemens 

 Brothers & Co., is of 4,917 gross tons. This vessel has laid 

 eight cables across the Atlantic, and carried out some important 

 repairs in deep water. She may be called one of the masterpieces 

 of the late Sir William Siemens, who, in the year 1873, con- 

 sidered the practice unsatisfactory of adapting existing ships for 



