St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1892-07-04
MERMAID MYSTERIES.
Now Is the Time to Commence
Talking About the An
cient Myths.
Ghat Science Has Done in
Deep Sea Explorations in
Late Years.
beautiful Fairy Stories Of the
Wonders Of the Ocean
Caves.
Come Facts Established by
Long and Patient In
vestigati0n.

Many vessels are now engaged in
deep-sea exploration, and the result of
their labors has been to correct many
erroneous impressions as to the deniZens
of the great deeps and to shiver into the
dust and seafoam the foundations of
many pretty fairy story and old-time
legend, says the New York Advertiser.
1t may be said that in their broader feat
ures the contour of the ocean bed and
the phases of deep-Sea life aIe now for
the first time revealed. Here are some
of the Interesting facts that have been
gathered:
1t was supposed few years ago that
the ocean bottom was largely counter
part of the land features of the globe
with its mighty mountain ranges push
ing up toward the surface of the sea,
and deep valleys and glens sinking to
almost unfanthomable depths. This is
found to be true only to limited ex-
tent. Here and there. TO be sure,
mighty mountains push toward the
surface or rise above it, forming
islands: then again. the bottom sinks in
a narrow trough. as off the northeast
coast of Japan. until it seems as though
the sounding line could never measure
its depth. But the ocean bed, in the
main. is found gently to undulate, and
would present the appearance, if it
could be observed, of aslightly rolling
plain. 1t has been found also that we
used 10 have very exaggerated
Views of Ocean Depths.
Maury, in his day the great authority
upon the ocean, pepulariZed the idea
that depth of eight or nine miles
might be found in mid-ocean. We know
now that depth of five miles is very
exceptional. Gen. Won TillO, who has
made the latest determinations of ocean
depths, fixes ten times as many forms
of deep-sea life as are familiar to ocean,
Ographers. We can form some idea of the
abundance of life existing in some re-
giOns at depth of two and half miles,
when 1t is said that at a single haul of
the trawl, only twelve feet wide
and dragged over the bottom for very
short distance. as many as $50 speci-
mems of the higher forms of deep-sea
life have been obtained. One very
interesting fact seems to have been es-
tablished by the recent investigations in
the Pacific OF our fish commission
steamer Albatross. 1t has long been
known that the group of animals char
acteriSflc OF the upper part of oceanic
forms of lite near and at the bottom of
the sea. The Challenger investigators
thought they had established the fact
that another distinct group of animals
exists in the intermediate depths be-
tween these upper and lower forms of
life. This theory seems to have been
upset by the
Work of the AIbatross.
The naturalists of this vessel have
found that the forms of sea life in the
upper portion of the ocean waters may
descend to depth of 1900 feet OF so
from the surface. but there then sue
ceeds barre II zone which continues to
within $50 to 800 feet from the bottom,
where the deep-sea animals begin to APP
pear. AS a rule these deep-sea animals
have no eyes, showing that they have
nc need of them. The fact that they are
subjected to enormous pressure is shown
by many of them bursting open when
brought to the surface. Some of them
have very bright colors, and they are
found most abundantly along the courses
Of the great currents. showing that
these rivers in the ocean bring a large
amount of food for the deep-Sea fauna.
A narrative of the minor and curious
incidents of the deep-sea exploration
would make an Interesting story. 1t
was distressing, though rather ludi-
crous. mishap that befell DR.. Hansen,
who unfortunately wrote his labels and
description of the spopges collected by
the Norwegian North Atlantic eXpedi-
ton in fugitive ink, and the records of
his work became indecipherable. One
thermometer now in use registers the
temperature at any desired depth by
means of weight sent down the line
at the depth required, and. striking the
thermometer, inverts it. A while ago a
small fiat fish was investigating the in
strument at depth OF 1900 feet when
the weight descended and
Caught the Animal.
From the standpoint of a deep-sea
fish. it seems hard that ALI animal living
so far from the resources of civilization
should he exposed to accidents by
machinery. But beyond these depths
there may be deeper depths into which
science has not yet east its dragnet
in search of facts. There fancy
and Imagination may still roam, and
the faith in mermen and mermaidS and
other hulnan-like Inhabitants of the
= ocean which have figured in song and
story from the most ancient times, may
still linger little longer with us. Some
OF the accounts in respect to mermaidS
are highly circumstaDtial, much more
SO than the stories of the summer
seaserpent. For instance. on one
occasion Shetland fisherman
saw group of mermaids
dancing on the strand. He ran and
picked ND the sealskin belonginging to
one of them before she could secure it,
Then she was at his mercy and he was
obliged to marry her. One of her chill
6rQp fOun6 tba caolclyi,, c,hcoo,,o,+i,,
and showed it to her. She immediate
~ put it on and escaped
into the water. being afterward
seen by her husband in the
form of a seal. Mermaids have been
said to commonly appear in the form of
seals while in the water. divesting
themselves of the skins when they come
OH shore, and assuming the aspect of
beautiful girls. Sometimes they are of
an amiable disposition, while on other
occasions they are
Extremely Misclsievous.
In Russia they are disposed to tickle
bathers to death. Water sprItes in that
country are imagined to be the ghosts of
stillborn and unbaptiZed children or of
drowned persons. They light the mys-
FERROUS jack-o'-lantern. Sometimes thev
raise storms. and ordinarily they have
much influence upon the luck of fisher
men.
Columbus described three mermaids
when he himself saw floating on the
waves. Many other early navigators
give similar accounts. In the writings
of Hendrix Hudson, that bold mariner
says: Zone of our company, looking
overheard, saw mermaid. She came
close to the ships side, looking earnest
ly at the men. Soon after sea came
up and overturned her. From her
navel up her back and breasts were
like a woman's her body as big as one
of u.s.. and long black hair hanging
down her back. When she dived we
saw her tail, which was like that of a
porpoise, speckled like a mackerel. .
Undoubtedly those mermaids beheld
by oldtime voyagers were dugongs
and manatees. Seals and Walrns
seen by persons unfamiliar with
these animals have given rise
to many such tales. Scoresby says tina,
the front view of young walrus with.
a1ac n