Tama County Republican. (Toledo, Tama County, Iowa) 1867-1872, 1867-06-21
A Submarine Boat With Ten Men on
the Bottom of the Ocean.

The Heralds Valparaiso correspondent
sends the following:
After the bombardmcnt Of Valparaiso and
while the Spanish Acct was at Collao, man
residing at Valparaiso, constructed subma>
rine boat for the purpose Of applying ,orpe-
does to the Spanish frigates. The boat was
forty feet long and was propelled by screw
worked by hand. SO confident was her buil-
der in her efficiency that at the first expert
ment in the bay he took with him into the
boat his son and eight friends. After sailing
about few minutes on the surface, the boat
was made to sink without the rrecauton Of
having the cables attached for use in case Of
accident, or even buoy TO mark the spot
where she went down. Several hours elapsed
and the boat failing TO return the Spectators
crowded on the mole began to fear that all
was not right, and the day passed away, the
GUS party had gone to the bottom. Late in
the afternoon the mail steamer from Panama
came in and fred gun near the spot where
the gun disappeared.
the steamers with passengers, ETC., bubbles
were discovered rising upon the surface of the
water where the submarine boat was last seen
aud as they came up at regular intervals in
small numbers it was supposed that the party
was still alive, aud hearing the steamers gun,
and knowing that great many boats would
be going to and fro, was signalling for help
by ejecting air. 4 diver belonging to one of
the English men-of-war was at once sent
down. and after half an hours anxious wait
ing he returned with the intelligence that the
boat was on the bottom, in thirty-three faith
oms Of water. Chains and cables were i'm
mediateiy attached to the boat, and repeated
efforts made to, raise her, but without avail,
her bottom seeming to have been sucked in
the oozy bed of the sea, and become firmly
fastened. All night and the next day, until
afternoon the bubbles kept coming up like
signals, sometimes not appearing for half an
hour at time, and then suddenly rushing up
for few seconds with great force. The feel
ings Of the populace assembled to rescue the
party from their terrible fate may be imagin-
ed but what must have been the reflections
of the men during those awful hours at the
bottom of the sea, knowing as they did, what
little hope there was for them.
| They could have heard the divers working
on the sides of their boat attaching the chains,
and, perhaps, felt the strain as the cable drew
taut; but as time sped away without their
being raised, dspair, worse than death must
have taken hold of them. Doubtless they
| tried 10 signal through the sides Of their boat
to the diver hammering outside, but he, in his
diving dress, could hear nothing. The apara-
lures to the interior were so small that but
one person could pass through atea time, and
that very slowly, SO that if an attempt was
made to escape by that means all would be
drowned. After many hours Of laborious eff
forts is raise the boat the hosting machinery
broke, aud the attempt was necessarily aban-
doned. About the middle of the afternoon Of
the second day the bubbles commenced to
grow fainter and more rare. and before sun
down entire8 ceased. The boat still lies
where it went down, and passengers arriving
by the steamer are told by the boatmen, as
they row toward the shore, the painful story
| Of these ten mems fate, and OF the females
| who still mourne in Valparaiso for their faith
ers snd BROKERS i'm the iron coffin at the bot
| tom Of the sea.