Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1888-06-10

WHAT A DIVER SAW UNDER THE
WAVES or THE HUDSON.
The Floor of the River . Great Mass Of
'Siimc-Some of the Sighss-Broken
Wires, Pipes, Sewage. Ese.-A Dead
Man.

Siime-Some OF the Sights-Brokeu
Wires, Pipes, Sewage. E.e-A Dead
Man.
In New Yo-a city, near the BROOKLYN
bridge, and visible from the promenade Of
that great visGuct, IS a loft which has
Ing been a fayorite headquarters Of the
professional divers who do business along
this part OF the Atlantic coast The place
is ell furnished, coy and supplied with
ali the latest ideas IN submarine work.
Every day il is visited by the divers, who
come for new orders for work, 10 obtain
assistance upon some hard task, or 10 pro
cure supplies for their peculiar calling
One afternoon while party OF friends,
chiefly newspaper men and divers, we-s
chatting over the news OF the day, one Of
the more popular sulo,queous toilers
entered who had bssr assent some time
from the city. He joined In the CONVEX
sation, aud afte- nearly every member OF
the party had related some experience,
said: Il do not recall any exciting episode
in my career at the present moment, but
only the humdrum OF my daily career. ]
suppose, however, that IL saey interest
outsiders and so give the story Of a days
work Last fall one OF the OCEAN steamers,
in approaching her pier. lost valuable
anchor and chain cable through the care
leSsEess or drunkenness OF some seamen
on board. The captain Of the boat was an
Old friead and he sent for NE To recover the
property. IL was not much of JOB, but
business was slack and was glad TO get
it. We got everything ready and went to
work day or two afterwsrd, about IL
O'Clock in the morning. We anchored our
boat. got the pump ready. adjusted my
and Y Non hax
an idea that the water is clear
like the air, but you ere away of 1t is
dirty, very dirty. Ordinarily you can see
about ten feet from you in any direction
SIDEWAYS. Over your bead il Is q glare.
Underneath il is as dark as a cave. With
an electrical lamp. the best invention Yet
made Is far as our trade is concerned,
YOU can see twice as far, but II i just
like standing By camp fire in the woods
at night time 1t makes the surrounding
darkness all the darker l reached the
bottom OF the Hudson aad began walking
around. The floor of great river N not
Ike Broadway, nor even the beach ct
Coney Island. Il Is great mass OF ooze
or slime, into which you sink sometimes
10 your knees sometimes 10 your waist
and sometimes over your head You DO
as much work by feeling as by seeing.
J liS gay SNAUt& = AtfA 81 GufuHloIDAhfN
things. but under water they interested
even me. One was q mass of telegraph
and telephone wires from New York IL
Jersey City. Some were whole and some
were broken, probably 10y the anchors of
small vessels that hove 10 over night
just above
\ few OF the broken wires stIll stuck
ont just as II they bad been pulled so by
main force. All O; the wires showed the
effect of their sgbmergeuee. Some were
ha.f rotten. others WcTe beginning 10
decay or rust. Every one had something
attached 10 It. Little snails, oyster shells,
stawced, eel, grass rags and other water
logged matter from the Land were sew
oil tho things attached 10 the wires. Fur
Their on 1 came across The oil pipe through
which the Standard oil company pumps
I.e.roleum direct from the oil wells Of
Pennsylvania 10 the great reiineries in
brooklyn and Williamsburg. The pipe
was stronger and more accurately made
t.au the ordinary gas and water pipes we
bee in the city. Yet ! thought that II
rome craft got the fiuke Of its anchor un
der il and pulled quite hard then 1t would
break short end cover the hagbor with
crude petroleum. There is a great deal
OF wood lying around the bed OF the river.
Contrary To public opinion, wood is not
lighter than water. Full Of mir IL is 81
course, but when wafer soaked OF logged
j. nearly always sinks lis weight is so
close 10 water, though, that IL doesn't
work its way down into the fine dirt and
1aud of the bottom. For this reason IL il
very apt to deceive amateurs aud novioea.
.'There ia another thing that divers see
under the Hudson, and that is that tho
river il being lilled up through the folly
or ignorance Of human beings The great
sewers never stop throwing their vile con-
tents into the slips. Every steamer, from
tug to ocean greyhound, drops rs ashes
overheard. Every vessel does the same
with its sweepings and refuse. Then the
scows, which ought To carry The ashes and
garbage of this city Ear away, save time
aud trouble by dumping them in dark
nights into the hudson
There are not very many fishes IN the
North river. There may be, but we divers
don't see much Of them. Probably they
see US first and give AS wide berth.
Those / meet most are eels and little
sinners, or minnOws. II. however, wa
carry one OF those new fashioned incan-
descent lamps II acts like jack lantern
fl eel speariRg, and brings shoals II nsh
around. They are horribly uniutelligent,
and after studying q fellow five minutes
and swimming OF they viii Immediately
return and begin sysiug him again, As II
they had never sect EiE1 before. We
never mind them, a. they arc harmless,
End couldn't be caught bY Us even IL NO
desired To get a good mess OF than when
a. work
The most unpleasant thing a diver
can meet - the dead body 0! q human
being /: u a popular eslusion that all
drowned men come 70 the surface after
several days- Probably they would II
they were LEFT alone and ware not attacked
~ wharf rats, sels and fishes. But IL the
llGason they are always attacked In this
way within an hour two sfter they ara
submerged Once attacked that ends H.
TIE breaking Of tie skin d.7uses some
thing 10 may be a sceat around, and then
everything travels fos that body 20 yea
squars meal Loag before decomposition
e. 10 80 cuf ard Tid5leG that What gasez
ere formed have 10 chance 70 accumulate
and initiate tie walls Il tie abdomen. We
divers never touch bodies 10 tn., state. be
Gaze /. brings The worst luck ycssib.e
here in very htt.s romance or beauty
about . Divers Life. The white aand
beaches and coral foorx, the brilliant
oolOred Gshes and the exquisite forests a
tie tea thai the reading public never
weary of ia Jules Verne and other lying
writers Go not exist IL IL cold, dark,
filthy and dead. The FIRST tirss you 70
down there Is novelty and sxeitsrnsss
about IL which are very pleasant. When
these weG- OF you feel Ike tee gave
C.zyers who every morning 20 70 work "a