San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1892-04-19
STORIES BY A DIVER.
HAIR RAISING EXPERIENCES UNDER
MEATH THE WATER.

Eating Shark-How the Pumps Act
When u Man Is Over One Hundred Feet
Below the Surface of the Sea.
Mr. Edward H. Littlefield, a native of
Block Island, but now keeper of a fish
market on Fountain street, sixty-six years
old, was diver for twenty-four years. in
all spent forty years under the water or
upon it, and has tack lied wrecks from Lake
Superior to Niagara Falls and from Maine
to Port Royal. He nearly lost his life ten
years ago while getting the cargo out of
the schooner Warren Gage, off the east Of
Narragansett pier, and has since that time
preferred to stay above watet,
"My first experience" said he, was In
Seaconnet river, in 1859, hunting for Cap
tain Ben Tallman's son, Jerome. It was
in the month Of August, and Jerome Tall
man had been In the water eleven days.
They'd dragged for him, but couldn't find
him. / was shipman for Captain Charles
Herbert, the wrecker then, but one day
the regular diver took sick, and as they
had an agreement giving Captain Herbert
$500 if he found the body in three days and
$500 if he did not, with the idea of working
at it all the time, was picked out to go
down II was right off Gould's island, and
Invent down at 1880 O'Clock in the morning
| wasn't used to it, so took sick about $3.50
clock, but got some old Cognac brandy
to drink and went back about II. The first
thing | saw when got down the second
time was swarm of bluefsh. | went
through them, and then came lot of dog.
fish.
FIGHTING OFF A SHARK
after got through them felt some.
thing whirl me around | could tell it
wasn't the current, so ] looked around to
see what it was There was big shark
off to my left, looking at me. I'd have
given a city to be out of his way but says
|, if go up he'll bite me in two, and so
decided to stay there. ! felt just as If my
helmet was rising up. | suppose it was my
hair. Well, Mr.. Shark looked at me
awhile. Then he goes round me twice and
a half, and then got my knife out again
He turns on one side, and could have put
a barrel in his mouth easy. | knew what
was coming, so | waited. He dashed for
me, and as he came | stepped one side.
shut my eyes and slashed with the knife.
| caught him in his life, for ] cut his heart
right in two.
"Iopened my eyes and found him lying on
the bottom fifty or sixty feet off, the blood
rising from him in bubbles. | went up-to
him, and then something happened to me-
| don't know what | suppose ] tainted,
for came to with my body leaning against
the sharks, down there ON the bottom.
Well | hadn't given any signal to my ten.
der, so he had kept up the air supply, but
pretty quick ] felt them pull three times,
to ask me if ] was all right. They said the
blood all came up to the top in bubbles be
fore it mixed with the water.
But, after all, | had my greatest expert
ences in the two years before the war. The
time went down l6S feet, the deepest
ever got, was in 1860. "A vessel went down
east-northeast of Point Judith and the
captains wife and daughter were drowned.
| went down after them. They talk to me
now of going down 500 or 600 feet. but |
don't believe it.
HOW THE PUMP ACTS
after the first 100 feet the pumps won't
supply man with air, except inside his
helmet. Before that it will circulate
around his body When it only reaches
his helmet his clothes begin to cling to
him and his pores flow out all the water in
his body. 1t is terrible sensation. Now
got down to this vessel and started to
descend into the companionway. At the
first step began to feel numb all over. 1t
was the pressure of the water above me,
and as I'd been told about it, | went back
on the deck of the sunken vessel and
climbed into the ratlines. ] hadn't gone
up more than three steps before felt bet
ter. Then | went back again. You can
continue this right straight along and 90
deeper each time. When felt numb again
went upon deck and climbed onto the
rail. was all right in a minute, and then
went into the companonway again All
this time the vessel was waving from side
to side with the swell under the water
"Now, it's queer, but there's something
about bodies under water. Did you know
that if you went into the cabin of vessel
where one was that it would start toward
you, almost as if it were alives 1t is that
that makes the shock so terrible. You
can't avoid them. They come as if they
wanted to be taken away. Well, the cap
tain's wife and daughter were in the state,
room at the foot of the stairs and had to
open the door. took some blocks and
braced my whole weight against the door.
| weighed 200 pounds and the suit weighed
265 more. l knew there'd be a terrible