Weekly Chillicothe crisis. (Chillicothe, Livingston Co., Mo.) 1878-19??, 1880-10-28
TERRIBLE EXPERIENCE.

aboard the sloop-Of-war NiragO, one Of
our midshipmcn touched me on the
shoulder and Informed me that Licutcn-
ant Randolph wanted to see me.
81 have heard that YOU were some
thing of naturalist, Starbuck,' said
the officer, smiling.
mo sir replied; no naturalist,
although take interest in"
"Oh, well, never mind" quoth the
lieutenant You have seen ourdiving
bell?"
answered YES" wien the Iieutcn-
ant Informed me that he wanted me to
60 down under the SEA with our boat
swain, Randolph, formerly pearl
diver, to look for curious fish which,
on the day previous, had been pierced
and killed with pike. In form, the
fish reScmhled a serpent, was about
thirty inches in length, and had upon
both sides Of its neck Il pair Of sing)l-
lar appendageS, something like wings.
Its most striking prcularity, however.
was one eye, of Il grccniSh color. silu-
ated ON the top Of lis head. On being
struck with the pike the creature had
rolled over apparently dying, and then
dove ont of sight.
81 think" continued the lieutenant,
that such a curiosity is worth cotain-
ing, and have picked you ont to 90
with Randolph, believing that You are
interested in natural history. Besides,
| will pay you guinea if You will go"
bowed acquicsceucc, and went away
to make preparations. The diving he'll
soon was on deck, ready to he hoiSted
and swung over the side. The instru-
ment was little damaged hut neither
Randolph nor anticipated danger.
We were presently in our places. sing
ing out "Alright" when the bell he
gan to descend.
Down, down, down lower and lower.
We glanced round us on all sides, hut
as yet saw nothing Of the strange fish.
Curious looking specimens of the tinny
tribe however, greeted us in many
directions.
Now we hung suspended in mid-sca.
The air had become somewhat impure.
50 we opened the stop-cock and let it
out, feeling, moment after. 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 signal cord to init
mate our desire TO he lowered still fur
thcr, when we felt sudden jerk. felt
the bell going down faster than we had
anticipated, and to our horror. realized
that the rope by which the instrument
was suspended had parted from the
hook to which it was attached.
Away went the" "pipe" at the same
moment and we only Saved ourselves
from instant destruction hy stopping
up the aperture thus left in the toy
with a thick handkerchief. Otherwise
the water beneath, no longer meeting
!. the resistance of the air, that element
escaping, must have filled the bell in :
brief space.
We heard the water roaring mC
gurglng round us as we descended
our descent, however, became each in
stant slower, until finally the Resistance
of the confined air kept us suSpendc,
about two feet above the bottom Of tn
sea.
The air Of our floating prison ha,
by this time become almost unbearahl
not only from its being so denSCly CON
pressed, bnt also from long coniinC
ment.
TerrOr-strlcken, we glanced at eac
other. The eyes of Randolph, motrut
, ing from his head, looked blO0d-sho
tt and tinged with a strange green colo
> while his dUsky skin seemed to shrin
like shriveled parchment. The mo,
> startling change in his appearance wa
J, the sudden apparently superannuatc
look of his visage. A man of fifty, Il
v seemed at least thirty years older,
S Presently his teeth began to uttI
Y in his head, his form was bent almo,
e double, he threw his arms in agony ;
& if clutching at something.
+ How useless this pantomine SCENE
l. to me! He wanted fresh aiT---to clutC
at air! What mockery,
re "Starbuck,' he presently gasped.
+ i wouldn't know you, YOU look
II be fifty! You and | are a-dying." &c
t, have mercy on us! What shall we dc
lr | could only stare at him, stupid wit
4, despair
IL The air in the bell become moro an
l. more sitting. The boatswain flew
y my side. and squeezed me inmad a~or
'f until my bones felt as if they woul
" crack.
" "Air! air! air" he shrieked in II
ne ear.
'h ! endeavOred to speak, but only
er hoarse rafting in my throat obeyed II
he will. My brain began to whirl.
gasped hard for breath. A tenih
oppression was upon my lungs. n
No boatswain had now released me.
es staggered against the side of our pr
| on; my senses gradually seemed d
at serting me.
nd Through one of the glass cases
Of the instrument, Randolph now point
"o out to me a huge shark, which, wi