wn
so we spent a day inspecting the plant of the Mackay-Bennett cable,
which has its terminus at Hazel Hill, about two miles from Canso,
finding some very agreeable acquaintances in the persons of Mr.
Dickinson, the manager, and Mr. Upham, his first assistant electrical
expert, who proved to be a Castine man and was deligted to meet some
Yankees from his old cruising grounds, Penobscot Bay, and getting some
interesting knowledge concerning ocean telegraphy. It seemed strange,
to say the least, to be in communication, as we were, with a ship out
in mid-Atlantic, repairing a cable, and to have an answer from Ireland
to our message in less than a minute after it was sent.

[Solid shot at Halifax] With one stop on account of fog and
threatening storm, we reached Halifax in two more days. The
introduction to it, though, was not so pleasant, for as we were
running up the harbor solid shot from one of the shore batteries came
dropping around us and skipping by us, altogether too near for
comfort. However, no damage was done beyond the injury threatened to
Her Majesty's property in the proposition for a while considered to
call away boarders, land and take the battery. We found later that it
was merely target practice and nothing disrespectfully intended
towards the flag flying from our peak, so were satisfied that we had
not made any hostile response.

Once ashore the hospitable Haligonians began by inviting the Professor
and others to a dinner at the Halifax Club. The next day we enjoyed
an official reception, and accompanied by Premier Fielding and members
of his Cabinet, Consul General Frye and other gentlemen, were taken on
an excursion about the beautiful harbor in the steam yacht of one of
our entertainers, given a dinner and right royally toasted at one of
the public buildings, and were finally taken to the Yacht Club House
for a final reception.

At Halifax some of our party fearing more delay in reaching Rockland,
left us, so with diminished numbers but plenty of enthusiasm we made
ready for the last stage of the voyage. After some rather amusing
experiences with our assistant steward or "cookee," who seemed to
reason that because he had been so long deprived of the luxuries of
modern civilization he should employ the first opportunity he had to
enjoy them in making himself incapable of doing so, and who was
brought aboard the morning we sailed only after a somewhat prolonged
search, we "squared away" for Cape Sab