The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1869-08-26
A Sponge and What it Is.

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oWhat is sponge made Off" said
GEORGE. grasping, snufing, and wink1ng
under his Croton bath. No one near
could tell him.
Now listen, little George. and will
tell YOU what q sponge is.
The sponge W hich washes your face was
brought up from the bottom of the ocean
and was part of q living animal. For q
long time sponges were supposed to be
plants. Messls. Agassiz and Gould, in
184S, called them SC I; but later obserVa-
tions have proved them to be animals and
they have been placed in the class Proto-
goa, the class most resembling plants.
When first found in the water, their
appearance is very different from this
which YOU now see. This is the skeleton
only, the part corresponding toour bones
When this was a complete living thing,
deep down under the ocean, 1t was cover
ed all over the outside, and filed ineVery
one of these-hole with soft substance
something like the white Of an egg, and
this was like our flesh. It was fastened
tightly to a rock, and its color was dull
blush black on the upper side and a dir
ty white below. 1t was formerly suppos-
ed to be plant, because it was always
fast in one place, but for other reasons it
is decidedly animal. All through the
mass is a regular circulation, like our
blood and food. It has been seen to alb
sorb nutritious matter-that is to eat, or
rather to drink. You see all over its sur
face orifces or holes; these communicate
with each other throughout Into the
larger of these, called pores, the sea-WateI
is constantly entering, and out of the
smaller ones, called vents, it is regularly
spouted, and it doubtless finds in the sea
water minute animals which serve it fol
food and increase its bulk,
And this strange animal produces 9th
ers like itself Twill tell you how. '
From the soft part a little globule j!
seen to float off and after moving about
for while very briskly here and there
as if looking for place, it fastens Itself
to some rock. Next gradually begins tC
be seen the more solid skeleton (what we
have here), the soft part increases, and
so it grows, not very slowly, either; fol
the divers find it after three years large
enough to bring away.
To get these sponges from the bottom
of the ocean, furnishes occupation for 6
great many people Ore thousand mer
are blsy in the Grecian Archipelago
alone; and thousands besides, with many
hundred boats are engaged in the Gulf O
Machri, on the Barbary coast, and else
where; so that in many of the Villages
there-from May to September bes
diving time-only old men, women, anC
children, can be found.
The finest kind is brought from thC
Agean sea. Atdaylight III the summe
time when the weather is pleasant 10
it requires smooth Water-the boats witt
six or eight men and one pair of oars, vii
leave shore and proceed to where th'
water is eight or ten or even thirty faith
oms deep, for those found in shallow
water are very inferior.
Here they stop, and the divers prepare
todescend Each one puts hoop around
his neck, and to this hangs bag il
winch the sponges are put as they arr
gathered. In very deep water the diver
uses a rope with heavy stone to it. HI
sinks the stone TO the spot he intends tx
reach, and this holds the rope steady
which he uses to assist himself coming
up again to the surface.
After being busy thus till noon the,
return to some of those pleasant littl
hooks which abound on the shores of tn
Archipelago, to prepare what they hay,
gathered tit for sale.
The first thing is to press out the sof
part of the animal, and then to bleacI
the remainder in the sun; 50 they beat
them and stamp on them and trample on
them till there is no more life left The
skeleton part is then washed and spread
in the sun until it is quite clean anc
grows to be this dull yelloWish color
then they are tied up in bags and sent tC
market for sale; and to all parts of Asia
Europe and America, and used mostly fol
washing purposes.