505 
of Edinburgh^ Session 1865 - 66 . 
cient to act, when nearly vertical, with any sensible force on the ship, 
were discussed at some length. The manageability of the Glreat 
Eastern, in skilful hands, had been proved to be very much better 
than could have been expected, and to be sufficient for the require- 
ments in moderate weather. She has both screw and paddles — an 
advantage possessed by no other steamer in existence. By driving 
the screw at full power ahead, and backing the paddles, to prevent 
the ship from moving ahead, or (should the screw overpower the 
paddles), by driving the paddles full power astern, and driving at 
the same time the screw ahead with power enough to prevent the 
ship from going astern, “ steerage way ” is created by the lash of 
water from the screw against the rudder; and thus the Great 
Eastern may be effectually steered without going ahead. Thus she 
is, in calm or moderate weather, almost as manageable as a small tug 
steamer, with reversing paddles, or as a rowing boat. She can be 
made still more manageable than she proved to be in 1865, by 
arranging to disconnect either paddle at any moment ; which, the 
speaker was informed by Mr Canning, may easily be done. 
The speaker referred to a letter he had received from Mr Can- 
ning, chief engineer of the Telegraph Construction and Maintenance 
Company, informing him that it is intended to use three ships, and 
to be provided both with cutting and with holding grapnels, and 
expressing great confidence as to the success of the attempt. In 
this confidence the speaker believed every practical man who wit- 
nessed the Atlantic operations of 1865 shared, as did also, to his 
knowledge, other engineers who were not present on that expedi- 
tion, but who were well acquainted with the practice of cable-lay- 
ing and mending in various seas, especially in the Mediterranean. 
The more he thought of it himself, both from what he had wit- 
nessed on board the Great Eastern, and from attempts to estimate 
on dynamical principles the forces concerned, the more confident he 
felt that the contractors would succeed next summer in utilising 
the cable partly laid in 1865, and completing it into an electrically 
perfect telegraphic line between Valencia and Newfoundland, 
