156 SUBMARINE CABLE LAYING AND REPAIRING. 



end in turn putting over on to bridge. The ship can, if required, 

 take the ordinary deflection test by unplugging A and B and 

 setting slides to zero. 



Special instructions are drawn up to be acted upon by both 

 ends in the event of it being impossible to communicate. 

 Starting, say, at the next full ten minutes following the 

 moment when communication is lost, shore will free for ten 

 minutes, then earth for ten minutes, and so on alternately, 

 until the next full hour, when speaking apparatus is put in 

 circuit for ten minutes. If communication is still impossible, 

 shore continues to free and earth alternately until the next 

 full hour, when speaking is again tried, and this is continued 

 until communication is restored. The only exception to this 

 is that at pre-arranged times daily, starting on the day after 

 communication is lost, ship frees and earths for a given period 

 while shore takes tests. 



Should a fault be payed overboard the occurrence is at once 

 known, and the ship stopped, brake applied to cable, and aft 

 paying-out drum put in gear with steam engine. Cable is then 

 hauled back inboard until the fault is cut out and a fresh end 

 jointed and spliced on, when all goes on as before. If the fault 

 developes at a considerable distance astern the method of hauling 

 in by aft gear is not satisfactory, steering being difficult (except 

 when the ship is provided with a bow rudder). In that case the 

 cable is picked up from the bows, and in order to do this it is 

 necessary to cut the cable and pass the end round to the bows. 

 First a stout rope is passed round the forward picking-up 

 drum, over bow sheave, round outside ship to the stern sheave, 

 •where it is bent on to cable. Before cutting the cable, ropes 

 are stoppered on to take the strain while lowering. The cable 

 is then cut and the end lowered, picking up at the same time on 

 the forward rope, and the ship is manojuvred to clear her 

 stern away from the cable and bring her bows on. When 

 the strain has been fairly taken by the forward rope, the slip 

 ropes are cut and cable is hauled in over bow sheave. It some- 

 times happens that there is a mile or two to pick up before the 

 fault is reached. Tests are taken by ship and shore at intervals 

 to localise, but such faults (due in most cases to an undis- 

 covered flaw in manufacture, probably imprisoned air in the 

 insulator forced out under the sea pressure) are very difficult to 



