''Le Fil qui chante'' is a ''

Lucky Luke ''Lucky Luke'' is a Western '' bande dessinée'' series created by Belgian cartoonist Morris in 1946. Morris wrote and drew the series single-handedly until 1955, after which he started collaborating with French writer René Goscinny. Their ...

'' adventure written by Goscinny and illustrated by

Morris Morris may refer to: Places Australia *St Morris, South Australia, place in South Australia Canada * Morris Township, Ontario, now part of the municipality of Morris-Turnberry * Rural Municipality of Morris, Manitoba ** Morris, Manitob ...

. It is the forty sixth book in the series and was originally published in French in 1977 by

Dargaud Société Dargaud, doing business as Les Éditions Dargaud, is a publisher of Franco-Belgian comics series, headquartered in the 18th arrondissement of Paris. It was founded in 1936 by Georges Dargaud (), publishing its first comics in 1943. ...

and in English by Cinebook in 2012. The story is based on the historical feat of constructing the

First Transcontinental Telegraph The first transcontinental telegraph (completed October 24, 1861) was a line that connected the existing telegraph network in the eastern United States to a small network in California, by means of a link between Omaha, Nebraska and Carson City, ...

line connecting the

West Coast of the United States The West Coast of the United States, also known as the Pacific Coast, Pacific states, and the western seaboard, is the coastline along which the Western United States meets the North Pacific Ocean. The term typically refers to the contiguous U.S ...

and the East Coast of the United States in 1861. The title in English is ''The Singing Wire'', referring both to "singing" of wires (caused by

vortex shedding In fluid dynamics, vortex shedding is an oscillating flow that takes place when a fluid such as air or water flows past a bluff (as opposed to streamlined) body at certain velocities, depending on the size and shape of the body. In this flow, v ...

), and the transmission of communication (later voice) across electric cables.

Synopsis

One hundred thousand dollars will be offered to the city which will build the telegraph line to

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the capital and most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in Utah. With a population of 200,133 in 2020, th ...

the quickest.

Carson City Carson City is an independent city and the capital of the U.S. state of Nevada. As of the 2020 census, the population was 58,639, making it the sixth largest city in Nevada. The majority of the city's population lives in Eagle Valley, on the ...

in the west and Omaha in the east are up to the challenge. But the sabotage of the opposing team and the attacks of Indians will somewhat slow down the pioneers of the singing wire, of which Lucky Luke is a part, having resigned from

the Pony Express The Pony Express was an American express mail service that used relays of horse-mounted riders. It operated from April 3, 1860, to October 26, 1861, between Missouri and California. It was operated by the Central Overland California and Pike ...

to join the team.

Characters

* James Gamble: Optimistic engineer responsible for carrying out the telegraph between Carson City and Salt Lake City * Edward Creighton: Friend and rival of Gamble, head of the Omaha team * Bradwell: Dishonest leader of the Omaha team who intends to pocket the promised bonus for the one who arrives first in Salt Lake City, and a caricature of American actor Brian Donlevy. * Pots: Cook from the Gamble team, accused of being a traitor * Sparrowhawk: Indian hired by Gamble to persuade the Indian tribes allow the telegraph on their land

History

* Buffalo Bill appears in a panel at the start of the story. * The

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States ...

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...

appeared at the beginning of the album. * The president of the

Western Union The Western Union Company is an American multinational financial services company, headquartered in Denver, Colorado. Founded in 1851 as the New York and Mississippi Valley Printing Telegraph Company in Rochester, New York, the company cha ...

Hiram Sibley Hiram W. Sibley (February 6, 1807 – July 12, 1888), was an American industrialist, entrepreneur, and philanthropist who was a pioneer of the telegraph in the United States. Early life Sibley was born in North Adams, Massachusetts on February 6 ...

, appears at the beginning of the album. * James Gamble and Edward Creighton were the two engineers responsible for the ultimate telegraph junction. *

Washakie Washakie (1804/1810 – February 20, 1900) was a prominent leader of the Shoshone people during the mid-19th century. He was first mentioned in 1840 in the written record of the American fur trapper, Osborne Russell. In 1851, at the urging o ...

, chief of the Shoshone tribe, was real. He initially opposed the installation of the telegraph before being favorable to it. *

Brigham Young Brigham Young (; June 1, 1801August 29, 1877) was an American religious leader and politician. He was the second president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), from 1847 until his death in 1877. During his time as ch ...

appears at the end of the comic book album. * The president of the court of California,

Stephen J. Field Stephen Johnson Field (November 4, 1816 – April 9, 1899) was an American jurist. He was an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court from May 20, 1863, to December 1, 1897 ...

, appears at the end of the story. The telegram which he sends to Abraham Lincoln is, moreover, authentic.

Adaptation

This album was adapted from the animated series ''Lucky Luke'', released for the first time in 1984.

External links

''Lucky Luke'' official site album index

Goscinny website on ''Lucky Luke''
Comics by Morris (cartoonist) Fiction set in 1861 Lucky Luke albums 1977 graphic novels Works by René Goscinny Cultural depictions of Abraham Lincoln Cultural depictions of Buffalo Bill {{FrancoBelgian-comics-stub