The weekly Portage sentinel. [volume] (Ravenna, Ohio) 1854-1861, 1856-09-04
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THE OCEANS DEPTH.
A THRILLING TALE OF AN OCEAN DIVER

THRILLING TALE OF AN OCEAN DIVER.
-, The life OF one who explores the mys-
teries OF the sea, is not more pefilous than
fascinating. The charm Of terror hangs
around it, and the interminable succession
of exciting events render it dear to its pro-
fessors. Not to the common divers of the
east, who can remain but for fraction of
time beneath the wave, and grope fearlully
GtAong the rugged ocean mounds, but to
depth in the civilized mode Of diving, who
in his protective armor, may remain sub
merged for bours, and wander with impu'
nifty, for miles along those unknown re-
,gions far below the sea. TO him are
laid open the horrors Of the watery cre-
t,ion, and he may gaze upon such scenes as
an Arabian story teller presented to the
fearful eyes of Abdullah. To him the most
thrilling occurrences of the upper world
seem friv olous; for in his memory, he re-
tains thoughts that may we'll chill the soul
with dread
I am a diver--a diver from choicC-and
/ am proud Of my profession. Where is
such courage required as is needed here!-
It is nothing to be soldier; however,
but / forbear. will tell my story, and
leave others to judge concerning it.
An appalling ship.wrcck occurred, not
long ago, upon the widest part of the coast
of New wfoundland. The tidngs of this
calamity reached the ears OF thousands;
but amid the crowd of accidents which fol-
lowed in quick succession, it was soon
forgotten. Not by us, however. We found
that the vessel had sunk upon spot where
the waters depth was by no means great,
and that daring man might easily reach
her. She was steamer called the Mar
mion, and had been seen going suddenly
down, without moments warning, by
some fisherman near by. She had, undoubt-
.edly, struck a hidden rock, and had thus
been in one moment destroyed.
/ spoke to my associates of the plan,
and they approved Of it. No time was lost
in making the necessary preparations, and
q short time beheld us embarked in our
small schooner for the sunken ship. There
were six Of US, aud we anticipated extra
ordinary success.
II was the leader, and generally ventured
upon any exploit in which thete was un'
common danger. Not that the others were
towards; on the contrary, they were al
brave men, but | was gifted with n pres
ence Of mind of which the others were
destitute. AS two persons were needed tc
explore the Marmion, l had selected as my
companion, young fellow, whose steadi
ness and dauntless courage had several times
before been fully tested.
- 1t was a calm and pleasant day, but the
southern and eastern horizon looked de
fceitful. Small suspicious clouds were gath
cred there of i'll aspect, and "snaking fel
lows, regular hang dog fellows" as my com
.rade, Rimmer remarked to me. Neverthe
5t6SSS we WeFc Hot W uo Put oh Wy hIt''
cloudiness in the sky, but boldly prepared tt
venture, al1s 4
-. So deep was the water, that no vestigt
sufthe ships mast remained above the sur
aaface, to point out the resting place Of thu
Marmion. We were compelled, therefore
to select the scene of operations to the bes
of our ability. Down went the sails of ou
schooner, and We put on our diving armors
We fixed on our helmets tightly and screwed
on the hose. One by one, each clumsy
article was adjusted. The weights wer'
hung and we were ready.
alt looks terrible blackish, Berton,
said Rimmer to me. "as
,cs"Oh," replied, gaily, "its only liitl'
.mist4-all right !" @ "-a% E@
-ii"Ah ~ He uttered low exclamation
which sounded hollow from his cavernou
helmet.
2aaAll ready" cried in loud voice, whic
they couid not easily distinguish. The
making proper sign, swung over tn
side.
Al Down we went, I first and Rimmer clos
behind me. It did not take a long time 70
us 10 reach the bottom. We found ourselse