Raftsman's journal. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1854-1948, 1868-12-23
What the Bottom of the Sea is Like.

says: In 1868, Lieutenant Br oke OF tanned
mud from the bottom of the North Allan
tie, between Newfoundland and the Azores,
at a depth of more than 10, 600 feet, or two
miles, by the help of his sounding appara-
tus. The specimens were sent for examina-
ton to Ehrenberg, of Berlin, and to Bailey,
of West Point, and those able microscopists
found that this deep sea mud was almost
entirely composed of living organism-the
greater proportions of these being just like
the Globigerine already known to occur in
the chalk.
Thus far the work had been carried on
simply in the inserests of science, but Lieu
tenant Brooke method of sounding acquir-
ed high commercial value when the enter
prise of laying down the telegraphic cable
between Europe and America was underta-
ken. For IT became a matter of immense
Importance to know not only the depth of
the ocean over the whole line along which
the cable was to be laid, but the exact ma
ture CT the bottom, so as to guard against
chances of cutting or fraying the strands of
that costly rope. The Admiralty conse-
queutly ordered Captain Daymyn, an old
friend and shipmate of mine, to ascertain
the depth OF the whole line of cable, and
to bring back specimens of the bottom. In
former days such command as this might
have sounded very much like one of the i'm
possible things which the young prince in
the Fairy tales is ordered to do before he
can obtain the hand of the princess How
ever, in the months Of June and July, 1851,
my friend performed the task assigned to
him with great precision, without, so far
as | know, having met with any reward of
that kind. The specimens of Atlantic mud
which he procured were sent to me to be
examined and reported upon.
The result of all these operations is that
we know the contours and nature of the sur
face soil covered by the North Atlantic for
a distance of LOO miles from east to west
as well as we know that of any part of the
dry land
1t is prodigious plain, one of the widest
and most even plains in the world If the
sea were drained off you might drive wa
gon all the way from Valentia, on the west
coast of Ireland, to Trinity Bay in New
foundland. And, except upon one sharp
incline, about two hundred miles from Va
lentia, [ am quite sure that it would not
even be necessary to put the skid on, so gen
tie are the asceLts and descents upon that
long route. From Valentia the road would
lie down hill for about two hundred miles,
to the point at which the bottom is now
covered by / 700 fathoms of water Then
would come the central plain, more then
1000 miles wide, the inequalities of the
surface of which would be hardly percepti
BILE, though the depth of water upon it var
les from 10000, TO 10, 900 feet, and there
are places upon which Mount Blanc might
be sunk without showing its peak above
water. Beyond this, the ascent on the A
merican side commences, and gradually leads
for about three hundred miles, to the New
feundland shore.
Almost the whole of the bottom of this
central plain (which extends for many hun
dred miles in north and south direction is
covered by fine mud, which, when brought
to the surface, dries into grayish white
friable substance You can write with this
on a black board, if you are inclined, and to
the eye it is quite like very soft, grayist
chalk. Examined chemically it proves to
be composed almost wholly of carbonate of
lime, and if you make a section of it in the
same way as that in which piece of chalk
is made, and view it with the microscope,
it presents innumerable Globigerine embed
bedded in the granular matrix.