The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1892-05-08
DIVERS AND SHARKS.
Novel Electric Apparatus to Shock
tho Monsters of the Deep.
From the san Francisco Chronicle.

tho Monsters of the Deep.
From the San Francisco Chronicle.
H. NJ. Hartman. recently discharged from
the cruiser San Francisco at San Diego
upon the expiration of seven years serv-
ice, is in the city and tells an interesting
story of his experience as diver while in
vestigating the wreck Of the Blanco Enca-
lada. Hartman is q Pennsylvania, %
years old
During the trouble in Chile he enlisted
with the insurgents, and was successfully
an officer on torpedo boat, lieutenant of
artillery at the battle of Acacalgo river,
a SPY against Balmaceda and commanded
two pieces of artillery at the battle of Pla-
ella, which opened the way to Valparaiso.
He was wounded, and after recovery was
taken back in the American service.
One month after the insurgents, then in
possession Of the port, employed Hartman
and an Englishman, also a diver, to go
down and measure the hole and determine
the chances of raising the vessel. Divers
equipped with incandescent lights were
lowered into the ship. which was lying in
nine fathoms of water. The ship was ly-
ing on her port side. She had sunk In a
field of sea grass growing 10 feet high.
The waves had washed great avenues of
white sand through the grass TO various
parts of the vessel.
Almost everywhere were arms legs,
heads aud trunks of human bodies Many
of these the fish had eaten clean of the flesh,
only the skulls and bones remaining. The
flesh that still remained intact was soft and
musny. and when touched would fall away
from the bones. Many bodies were found,
the men having met death by drowning.
In the starboard rigging stood the skee-
tons OF two men with the bones of their
hands still clinching the ratlines The
whole scene was horrible and revolving be-
yond description. The greatest obstacle in
the work was the fish. There were mil
lions of fish and cells everywhere. They
would shoot through the water, and, mag
niied by the water and the glass of the di-
ver's helmet, and rejecting the rays Of the
electric light, they looked like thousands of
blades of polished silver.
Whenever Hartman would lay his hands
upon the deck they would come il contact
with a slimy eel. The cells would wrap
themselves about the divers legs as they
went along the deck. This, and coming in
frequent contact with dissolving human
flesh, afforded q variety of sensations not
frequently met with by even a diver.
Among these fishes were numerous sharks.
They were with difficulty kept away from
the divers, With one Hartman had a bat
tle The suit of diver is 30 shotted as to
keep him at about au equilibrium in the
wafer. WlJu bilRub uiObAOn no Cdu ohSliE
rise. As he goes over the bottom he rarely
touches ground. A diver is also provided
with weapon of defense against a raven
Gus fish, 10 the shape of an electric pole six
feet long and covered with rubber. except
ct the end, which is steel point.
Bending in large curve over this point
is hook with a ball on the end. The point
and ball is positive aud negative poles of an
electric current, which is furnished by wire
from a dynamo on the vessel. When shark
approaches too close to the diver the end Of
the pole is thrown against him, and the
current passes from the point through the
fish to the ball. The fish receives a violent
shock, which may either stun or kill him.
Hartman saw an enormous man,eating
shark slowly approaching him aud slowly
opening and shutting his enormous jaws.
When within striking distance the pole was
thrown against him. The shock Stopped
him aud he remained under the influence
for several minutes, then recovered and
come slowly on again. It was repeal ed
with the same result the third time HART
man dropped underneath the shark, and
while he was yet motionless ripped with
kuife along the belly from the gilIs to the
tail, leaving his intestines to fall out.