"_My dear Sir_,--Yesterday I received a letter from our mutual friend C. M. Lampson, Esq., from London, April 17th, in which he says: 'Our letter has been before Lord Palmerston for more than a fortnight, and as yet have had no answer; he is now out of town for the Easter holidays, and we cannot have a reply for another fortnight. If we are to make sufficient progress to enable us to do the work in 1863, it will be only in consequence of the pressure you bring to bear on your side. This is our only hope for the present. If the Washington government would direct Mr. Adams to press the matter here, I think we should succeed.' It has occurred to me that, considering the great importance to the whole commercial interest of the country of a telegraph across the Atlantic, you would be willing to act on the suggestion of Mr. Lampson and direct Mr. Adams to press the matter upon the English government. "With much respect, I remain "Very truly your friend, "CYRUS W. FIELD. "Hon. WM. H. SEWARD, Secretary of State, "Washington, D. C." Mr. Lampson, in his letter of April 17th, had referred to a deputation of the directors of the Atlantic Telegraph Company that on the 20th of March had waited upon Lord Palmerston, who was then Prime-Minister. Mr. Field replied: "NEW YORK, _May 9, 1862_. "_My dear Mr. Lampson_,--.... Four weeks ago this evening I arrived from England, and almost every moment of my time since I landed has been occupied in working for the Atlantic Telegraph, either in seeing the President of the United States, or one of his Cabinet, or some member of the Senate or House of Representatives, or an editor of one of our papers, or writing to the British provinces, or doing something which I thought would hasten on the time when we should have a good submarine telegraph cable working successfully between Ireland and Newfoundland, and if _we do not get it laid in 1863 it will be our own fault_. "_Now, now_ is the golden moment, and I do beg of you and all the other friends of the Atlantic telegraph to act without a moment's unnecessary delay. "I have written you and Mr. Saward so often since my arrival that I am afraid you will get tired of reading my letters; but from the abundance of the heart the mouth will speak, and I hardly think of anything but a telegraph across the Atlantic. Very truly your friend, "CYRUS W. FIELD." Again on May 29th to Mr. Lampson: "I am disappointed at the answer received from Lord Palmerston, but not discouraged the least by it, for we can succeed without further assistance from either government, as I believe that an appeal to the public will _now_ get us all the money that we want, provided the business is pressed forward in a proper manner." It was on the 7th of this month that he wrote to his brother Jonathan: