atient labor, a level space was found between Ireland and
Newfoundland, and it seemed to be so well adapted to the surveyor's
purposes that it was called the "Telegraphic Plateau."

[Illustration: THE GRAPNEL.]

Two or three large vessels were next equipped, and sent out with
several thousand miles of cable on board, which they proceeded to lay.
But the fragile cord--fragile compared with the boisterous power of the
waves--broke in twain, and could not be recovered. A second attempt was
made, and that failed, too. Brave men can overcome adversity, however,
and the little band of scientific men and capitalists were brave men
and were determined to succeed. Each heart suffered the acute anguish
of long-deferred hope, and each expedition cost many hundred thousands
of dollars. Nevertheless, the promoters of the Atlantic cable sent out
a third time, and when failure met them again, it seemed to common
minds that their scheme was a settled impossibility. Not so with the
heroes. Each failure showed them some faults in their plans or
machinery. These they amended. Thus, while they were left at a distance
from the object of their ambition, they were brought a little nearer to
its attainment.

Guided by the light of past experience, they equipped a fourth
expedition. The "Great Eastern" was selected, and her interior was
altered for the purpose. She was, and is still, the largest vessel
afloat. Her length is six hundred and ninety-five feet; her breadth
eighty-five feet, and her burthen twenty-two thousand tons. One of the
principal causes of failure in previous expeditions was the inability
of the cable to endure the severe strain put upon it in stormy weather
as it passed from an ordinarily unsteady vessel into the sea. The
"Great Eastern," from her immense size, promised to be steady in the
worst of gales. Her hold was fitted with three enormous iron tanks---a
"fore" tank, a "main" tank, and an "after" tank. The main tank was the
largest, and eight hundred and sixty-four miles of cable were coiled in
it. Eight hundred and thirty-nine miles in addition were coiled in the
after tank, and six hundred and seventy miles in the fore tank, making
in all two thousand three hundred and seventy-four miles of cable. The
food taken on board for the long voyage in prospect consisted of twenty
thousand pounds of butcher-meat, five hundred head of poultry, one
hundred and fourteen live sheep, eight bullocks, a milch cow, and
eighty tons