58 BULLETIN OF THE 
tained by keeping hold of the wire rope on deck, where the movements 
of the dredge are repeated by the vibrations of the steel rope so promptly 
that the moment it fouls or passes over rough bottom the speed of the 
vessel can at once be checked, or its direction altered, before the 
tension is great enough to affect the accumulators. It is only while 
hoisting the dredge that the accumulator is useful, and long before it 
works to its full power, the changes of form of the catenary of the wire 
rope, from an easy winding in of the dredge to the fouling of the same, 
will produce a greater or less strain, entirely unnoticed, on the accumu- 
lator, while winding up, if (as in our case) the strain is less than 2,000 
pounds. The steel rope was hoisted by a small double-cylinder winding 
engine, with a surging drum of two feet in diameter, round which from 
six to ten turns were taken, according to the depth, and the rope then 
passed to the reel, where it was coiled as closely as practicable, the reel 
being turned by four men at the crank. A great improvement could 
be made in driving the reel from the winding engine at a greater speed 
than the drum of the engine. 
In dredging, the dredge or trawl was invariably lowered indepen- 
dently of the winding engine from a reel built especially for our work. 
This reel, built of iron, consisted of a hollow axle two feet in diameter, 
four feet long, flanked by flanges extending eighteen inches above it, 
capable of winding 3,000 fathoms of 1}” steel-wire rope. The-axle upon 
which the reel ran was supported upon bearings carried upon a strong 
iron frame securely bolted to the deck; the reel was checked by a band 
friction break, by which one man could readily control the velocity of the 
steel rope as it was unwound and accurately regulate the speed. The 
break was of sufficient strength to stop the dredge even at a depth of 
nearly 2,000 fathoms, and while dredging or trawling the break was se- 
curely held in place and the dredging carried on from it. To wind up, 
the wire rope was stopped and sufficient slack taken from the reel to 
make the necessary turns round the surging drum of the hoisting-engine. 
When this was done the reel was made taught, the stops unfastened, 
and the wire rope wound up by the winding engine until the dredge 
came in sight. 
During the whole time the dredge or trawl was lowered or hoisted an 
accurate record was taken of the time spent in paying out or reeling in 
the rope, so that at any moment we knew the precise position of the 
dredge and the quantity of rope still out. The recorders were either 
Dr. Nourse or the Captain’s clerk, Mr. Sigsbee. 
The uniform success which attended all our hauls was undoubtedly 
