The first cable was put down during the years 1857-1858; but after transmitting about 400 telegrams, it went dead. In 1863 engineers built a new cable that measured 3,400 kilometers, weighed 4,500 metric tons, and was shipped aboard the Great Eastern. This attempt also failed.
第一条电缆是在1857年和1858年铺设的。但传送了大约400次电报后，它就失灵了。在1863年，工程师们又制造了一条长3400公里、重4500吨的新电缆，由“大东方号”船只装船。但这次试验还是失败了。
Now then, on May 25 while submerged to a depth of 3,836 meters, the Nautilus lay in precisely the locality where this second cable suffered the rupture that ruined the undertaking. It happened 638 miles from the coast of Ireland. At around two o'clock in the afternoon, all contact with Europe broke off. The electricians on board decided to cut the cable before fishing it up, and by eleven o'clock that evening they had retrieved the damaged part. They repaired the joint and its splice; then the cable was resubmerged. But a few days later it snapped again and couldn't be recovered from the ocean depths.
而5月25日，“鹦鹉螺号”船只潜入了3836米的深海底，正好是在电缆中断而导致工程失败的地点。这里距一爱一尔兰海岸有638海里。那时有人发现，下午2点钟时，和欧洲的电讯联系刚刚中断。于是船上的电工决定把电缆打捞出来之前，先把它切断。晚上11点，他们就把损坏的部分拉了上来。人们又重新做了一个联轴和接口，然后再把电缆沉入海中。但几天后，它又断了，而且再也不能从深海中打捞上来。
These Americans refused to give up. The daring Cyrus Field, who had risked his whole fortune to promote this undertaking, called for a new bond issue. It sold out immediately. Another cable was put down under better conditions.
但美国人并不一泄气。勇敢的塞路斯·菲尔德，这项工程的倡导者，冒险投入自己所有的财产，发起了又一次募捐行动。他不久就筹足了款项。这样，另一条电缆在更好的条件下制造出来了。