This board met in 1859, and sat two years. The
result of its experiments and investigations was a declaration, signed
by the members, that a cable properly made, "and paid into the ocean
with the most improved machinery, possesses every prospect of not only
being successfully laid in the first instance, but may reasonably be
relied upon to continue many years in an efficient-state for the
transmission of signals."
Meanwhile, Mr. Field labored energetically to revive the company. The
war which had broken out in the United States brought home to our
Government the urgent need of telegraphic communication with Europe, and
Mr. Field had no difficulty in obtaining from the President an assurance
that this Government would be most happy to join with Great Britain in
promoting this great international work. He addressed meetings of
merchants in various American cities, and displayed the greatest energy
in his efforts to enlist the aid of American capital. Very little was
accomplished, however, until 1863. By this time the success of the lines
in the Mediterranean and in the Persian Gulf had demonstrated the
practicability of long submarine telegraphs, and the public confidence
in the attempt had been revived to such an extent that the directors
ventured to call for proposals for the manufacture of a cable.
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