The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1850-1873, 1869-10-01

a privy-vault, cess-pool, or barn-yard,-1
then by all means commence by providing
good supply of rain water, and by so ar
ranging the establishment that no atom OF
the waste of the house or barn shall find
its way into the lower soil -AmeTican
AgrieusturSst for September:
Diving Bell Adventure.
WHILE in the harbor Of Valparaiso,
aboard the sloop- ofwar Virago, one of our
midshipmen touched me on the shoulder,
and said that Lieut.. Bardolph wanted to
see me. H-ff .r.rssT
81 have heard that you are something
of naturalist, Starbuck," said the officer,
smiling. it
"No, sir,"I replied; "no naturalist, al
though take interest in - 'p!s.
80, well, never mind" quoth the Lieu
tenant. You have seen our diving belly"
l answered Yes" 49,
The Lieutenant then said that he wanted
me to 20 down under the sea, with our old
boatswain, Randolph, formerly a pearl
diver, to look for q curious fish, which on
the day previous had been pierced and
killed with pike. -,
In form, the fish resembled serpent;
was about thirty inches in length, and had
upon both sides of its neck pair Of sin
gular appendages, something like wings.
Its most striking popularity, however,
was one eye, of grcenish color, situated
in the top of its head. On being struck
by the pike, the creature had rolled over,
Of sight. - .ll.-.'r.
al think" continued the Lieutenant,
1,of oh o,,rs0asfxr 10 rin
and have picked you out to go with Ran
dolph, believing that you are interested in
natural history.
bowed acquiescence, and went away
to make preparations.
The diving-bell was soon on the deck,
ready to be hoisted and swung over the
side. The instrument was little dam
aged, but neither Randolph nor l antici-
pated danger.
We were presently in our places, sing
ing out All right" when the bell begun
to descend.
Down, down, lower and lower. We
glanced round us on all sides, but saw
nothing of the strange fish. Curious look
ing specimens of the finny tribe, however,
greeted us in many directions. We could
see the sword-fish dart past, with its long,
protruding bone-weapon; the glObe-fish,
the sun-fish, the moon-fi fish, the balloon
fish, and the spiteful looking shark swept
through the green waters, almost brush
ing our bell with tails and fins. i
The air was become somewhat impure,
so we opened the stop-cOck, and let it out,
feeling momentafter fresh supply sent
down to us through the India rubber
"pipe" or hose secured into the top of the
bell.
Randolph was about touching the sig
nal cord, to intimate our desire to be low
cred still further, when we felt sudden
jerk, felt the bell going down rapidly, and
to our horror, realized that the rope by
which the instrument was suspended had
parted from the hook to which it was at
tachcd.
Away went the "pipe" at the same mo-
ment, and we only saved ourselves from
instant destruction by stopping up the
aperture, thus left in the top, with a thick
handkerchief. Otherwise, the water be-
meath must have filled the bell in few
moments.
We heard the water roaring and CUR
Cling round US as we descended; our de-
scent, however, became each instant
slower, until finally the resistance of the
confined air in the bell kept US suspended
about two feet above the bottom of the
sea.
The air in our floating prison soon be-
came almost unbearable, not only from its
being so densely compressed, but also from
long confinement.
Terror stricken, We glanced at each
other. The eyes of Randolph, prOtruding
rom his head, looked bloOdshOt and
tinged with strange green color, while
his dusky skin seemed to shrink like
shriveled parchment. The most startling
change in his appearance was the sudden,
apparently superannuated look of his
visage. A man of fifty, he seemed, at least,
thirty years older.
Presently his teeth began to rattle in
his head, his form was bent almost double,
he threw his arms around him in agony,
as if clutching at something. ~
= How horribly useless this pantomimc
seemed to me He wanted fresh air-to
clutch at air! What mockery!
"Starbuck," he presently gasped, "God
have mercy on us! What shall we do i"
What could we do? / could only stare
at him, stupid. with despair.
The air in the bell became more and
more sitting. The boatswain flew to my
side and squeezed me in his mad agony.
endeavored to speak, but only hOarse
rattle in my throat Obeyed my will My
brain begun to whirl. / gasped hard for
breath. A terrible oppression was upon
my lungs. The boatswain had now re-
leased me. staggered against the side of
our prision; my senses gradually seemed
deserving me.
Gradually, to my confused sight, a dark,
red-mist cloud seemed to float up all round
the bell My head now felt as though it
would burst. Terribly oppressed, l fell
upon my knees, and would have fallen into
the sea but for the boatswain, who now
held me-
Then all begun to grow dark. With q
superhuman effort halfraised myself and
looked around me, feeling like one cropping
in the dark. Bewildered, full of the most
agonizing pain, became aware that some
thing was swaying up and down before
my sight; up and down in that red-mist
cloud, mingling with the water. made
another effort-a great effort to cOmpre-
bend what it was, this swaying thing, and
I at last did so; understood that it was
hook attached to the end of rope, lowered
to us from the deck of the Virago, so far
above fo.-,r --,.-r --rr -
Starbuck!" gasped the boatswain, I'll
dash open the lens-this was a glass-in
the top of the bell then you stand by to
hook it on the inside!" ~
/ just managed to hear the words, and
they strengthened me with . wild hope,
although was still 80 bewildered that
could scarcely now see the swaying hook.
The boatswain's arm was before my eyes.
With one blow of his huge fist, dealt with
the remains of his strength, he shivered
the lens. e19 rtrfE
There was roaring sound; it was the
upward rushing of the water into the bell
as the air escaped.
There was no time to lose. thrust my
arm through the aperture and drew in the
hook, quickly attaching it to the top of the
inside Of the instrument
The next moment the water came bub
bling over the heads of the boatswain and
myself, and that was the last remembered
of what transpired in the bell. -
When recovered my senses found my
self in the steerage, with the ships doctor
bending over me.
"A narrow escape" were his first words
"Where is Randolph" exclaimed.
Here" answered feeble voice, and
rising, I beheld the boatswain in bunk
under me.
"He had q narrower escape than You
had" said the doctor "The thumb of
his right hand was bit off by shark,
which made spring for it just as we
pulled you two into the cutter, after the
diving bell was hauled to the surface"
A CETHpR TEN hoo0inr I>ff>p ;,,cr~<>.