South Branch intelligencer. [volume] (Romney, Va. [W. Va.]) 1830-1896, 1882-12-22

Professor A. +. verrill. of Yale Col
lsge, In a paper read few days ago.
before the National Academy OF Sci.
ence in New York city, relating to the
results Of the recent observations of the
coast says:
He has made $500 observations this
Summer for The United States Fish
Commissioners. He has cruised from
Labrador to Chesapeake Bay. and about
z, 100 miles out 70 sea. About go miles
outside Of Nantucket is a s.reak of
/, very cold water, and animals dredged
up are like those caught in the waters
OF Greenland, Spitztergen or Siberia.
The water Is fifty fathoms deep, and
tue bed of tho ocean is of clay. Boul-
dersweighing 500 or 1000 pounds are
dredged up. Professor Verrill believes
that they are brOaght down by iccbergs
from the Arctic regions and d ropped
when tue ice melts. The boulders are
found as far south as Long Island. Fur.
Their out to sea, 20 to 100 miles south
from tue southeastern coast of New
England, the lotion OF the sea. which
has Inclined very gradually eastward,
forming tableland, takes a sudden dip
downward, SO that. whereas the water
on the edge OF the bluff is 100 fathoms
deep at Tue bottom Of the basin it ia
1000 fathoms deep. The slope is as
high and as steep as Mount Washington
ami on its summit, which is level. di-
yer, could he go 10 so low depth, could
not put on: his hand without touching
q living creature. The bottom of the
sea is covered just there with fauna
which has never been before found out.
side OF the Mediterranean Sea, the Gulf
Of Mexico, the Indies, or other tropical
regions The number of species OF fish
drcdged up is 800, and over half OF them
have never before been seen by natural.
lists. Seventy kinds Of fish, ninety of
ctustacea, and two hundred and seven.
| " mollusks have been added TO our
fauna. The age of many of the speci-
mems show that they must be perma-
nent in that region. The trowel Lei,
down from the ship by a mile of rope
brings up ton OF living and dead crabs,
shrimp, star fish. and. as the trowel
simply scraped over small surface, the
ocean bed is plainly carpeted with
creatures.
Sharks arc seen by thousands in this
region, and countless dolphins, but it
seems strange that not fishbone is ever
dredged up. A piece OF wood may be
dredged up once year, but it is honey
combed by the boring shcll>fish, and
tails TO pieces at the touch OF the hand
This shows what destruction is con
stantly going on in those depths. If q
ship sinks at sea, with all on board, il
would lie eaten mp by fish with the ex.
ception of the metal, and that would
corrode and disappear. Not a bone OF
a human body would remain after a
few days. 1t is n constant display OF
the law Of the survival Of the fittest
Nothing made Ivy the hand Of man was
dredsed up after cruising for months iu
tie track of ocean vessels, excepting
coal clinkers showed overheard from
steamships. Here Professor Verrill
corrected himself. Twenty-Five miles
from LAND he dradged up an India-rub.
Der doll. That he said, was one thing
The fsh could not eat.
| Hero the Gulf Stream is forty miles
further west than any map shows, Pro-
: lessor Verriil continued, and this
stream Of water from the South nour.
: ishes the tropical life near Massachu-
9 sets. The temperature further ia
, shore is So in August, on the edge oil
the submarine Mount Washington so
and towards the bottom Of the basin So
while further cut TO sea the tempera.
3 ture Of the water grows colder. On the
!. surface the jelly fish, nautilus, and the
Portuguese man of-war, With other
tropical q b. are found In this bel,
the tile fish, about which SO much was
said year ago, were found in immense
: quantities, bat this summer. although
E expeditions have been made for the ex
press purpose OF catching some, moi
, one could be taken Undoubtedly they
have been killed, 10 fish, by storm
3 which carried the cold water into til.
/ Gulf Stream; indeed, it is known that
, cold current OF water resting on the o.
cean's bed may contain arctic fish, ant
a current Of warm water floating ovei
IL on the surface may be alive will
, tropical fish.
t As TO the quantity OF light at the bot
tom OF the sea th7re has been muci
dispute. Animals dredged from below
700 fathom9 either have no eJes, OF
faint indications Of them, or else thei
eyes are very large and protruding
, Crabs eyes are four or five times IS
large as those OF crab from surface
water, which shows that light is feeble
and that eyes To be Of any use must be
very large and sensitive. Another
strange thing is that where TIA.
creatures in those lower depths have
any color, II Ia Of orange or red. or red
dish orange. Sea apemoues, c0rals
sbrimp and crabs have this brilliant
+ color. Sometimes 10 IL pure red OF
[ scarlet, ard in manv specimens il in
p cines toward purple, Not green OF
blue fish is found Tire orange red i,
the iish's protection. for the blush
green light in the bottom Of the ocean