electricians waited breathlessly for an answer. The clerk in the
signal-house at Valentia was drowsy when their message came, and
disbelieved his ears. Many disinterested people, and even some of the
promoters of the cable, did not think it possible to recover a wire
that had sunk in thousands of fathoms of water. But the clerk in the
little station connected with the shore-end of the cable of 1865
suddenly found himself in communication with a vessel situated in the
middle of the Atlantic.

The delay aggravated the anxious watchers on the ship, and a second
signal was sent. How astonished that simple-minded Irish
telegraph-operator was! Five minutes passed, and then the answer came.
The chief electrician gave a loud cheer, which was repeated by every
man on board, from the captain down to his servant.

There are now four cables in working order, and the cost of messages
has been reduced twenty-five per cent. The New York newspapers now
contain nearly as much European news as the London newspapers
themselves.




THE CANARY THAT TALKED TOO MUCH

BY MARGARET EYTINGE.


Annette's canary-bird's cage, with the canary in it, was brought into
the library and hung upon a hook beside the window.