Sunbury American. [volume] (Sunbury, Pa.) 1848-1879, 1864-01-09
rrow the Monitors arc Cleaned.

rrow the Monitors nrc Cleaned.
OPERATIONS or THE DIVERS IN cnAi,LEsToN
HARDoR.
A correspondent of the Baltimore Ancri-
ON tells how the. bottoms of the monitors
off Charleston arc cleaned, as follows:
During recent visit to Port Royal l
witnessed with considerable interest the
operations Of the divers employed to clean
the bottoms of tho monitors, and perform
other operations under the water Messrs.
Joseph ii. Smith and James 3. Phelps have
o contract with the government for the
performance of this work, and have been OF
great use here. Their principal diver
appropriately named Watcrs--is so used to
this work that he has become almost
amphibious, remaining for five or six hours
ut q time under water. A man of herculean
strength and proportions, when clad IN his
submarine arnior he becomes monstrous III
size and appearance. a more singular sight
than to see him roll or tumble into the
water ami disappear from sight, or popping
up, blowing, as the air escapes from his
helmet, like II young whale, can scarcely be
imagined. Waters has his own ideas of a
Joke, and when he has q curious audience,
will wave his scrapcr about as he bobs
around on the water with the air of n
veritable river god. One of his best jokes
the better for being n vcritablc fact-occur-
red last summer. Whilst he was employed
scraping the hull of one of the monitors,
Il negro from one of the up-river plantations
came alongside with a DOat-load of water
melons. Whilst busy selling his melons
the diver came up and rested himself on
the side of the boat. The negro stared at
the extraordinary appearance thus suddenly
coming out of the water with alarmed
wonder, but when the diver seized one of
the best melons in the boat and disappeared
under the water, the gurSling of the air
from the helmet mixing with his mufiled
laughter, the fright of the negro reached a
climax. Hastily seizing his oars, without
waiting to be paid for his melons, he put
off at his best speed, and has not been seen
in the vicinity of Station Creek since. He
cannot he tempted beyond the bounds of
the plantation, and believes that the Yam
KEGS have brought river devils to aid them
in making war.
THE diver, when clothed in his armor is
| weighted with one hundred and eighty five
pounds. Besides his armor, he has two
leaden pads, fitting TO bis breast and back.
! The soies of his shoes are of lead, an inch
and half thick. All this weight is needed
to overcome the buoyancy given by the
mass Of air forced into the armor and dress,
the latter of India rubber, worn by the
diver. When below the surface he can
instantly bring himself up by closing mo-
mentariiy the aperture in the helmet for the
escape Of the air His buoyancv is imme-
diately increased, and he pops up like o
cork, and floats at will upon the surface.
The work of scraping the bottoms OF
| the monitors is very ardGOus. The diver
! sits upon SPAR lashcd athwart the bottom
Of the vessel, SO arranged as to be moved as
the work goes on, and with scraper fixed
to long handle works on both sides OF
! himself rs far rs he can reach. The mass
OF oysters that became attached to the iron
huls of one of the monitors, even during
| one summer here, is immense by actual
measurement it was estimated that two
hundred and fifty bushels of oysters, shells
and seawced were taken from the bottom Of
the Montauk alone. The captains of the
monitors have sometimes indulgcd in tht
novelty of mess of oysters raised on the
hu.s of their own vessels
Besides cleaning the monitors the divers
perform other important services. They
have ransackcd the interior Of the kcokuk
attached buoys to lost anchors, and made
underwater examinations of the rebel oh
structions. Waters recently examined thu
sunken Wcchawken, and met an unusua
danger for even his perious calling. Th'
sea was so violent that he was twice thrown
from the deck of the monitor. FINAL,
getting hold of the iron ladder he climbed
to the top Of the turret, when heavy SCI
cast him inside the turret between the guns
Fearing that his air hose would becom
cntangled, he made lis way out with nj
possible speed, and was forced to give NJ
his investigations until caimer weather OF
frrcn A more favorable OnDOrtunity"