The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1893-07-09
CREATURES OF THE OCEAN DEPTHS
They Fail TO Pieces When the Pressure a
Water No Longer Holds Them Together.

They FAN TO Pieces When the Pres.urc ~
Water No Longer Holds Them Together.
From the Cosmopolitan
The new submarine world now explored and
mapped out presents q very different picture
from that painted for us by tho poets But q
short time has elapsed since the bottom Of the
ocean was supposed to be the counterpart of
tho face OF the earth above water-wlth hills
and valleys. with precipitous mountains lift
ing toward the surface and profound gorges
sinking to unfathomable depths. The ocean
floor is far less diversified than the land.
Here and there. to be sure. islands In mid
ocean are the submits Of enormous noun
tatns rising. moro or less abruptly, from Q
generally level surface. and the eeA lying over
4sss Fss9n tn the seps sas
the ocean bottom consists Of vast fat Or
circum stance that has been noticed with In.
terest. aud that always creates surprise when
matter in the deeper part Of :lie oceans floor.
VI an fhe vessels sells lost IN midoCean: 81 oil the
Rst pepshs
iceberss: Of all the various substances drifted
900 to 300 fa 4. in depth covers the unl-
called gtobieerina ooze. x lit Of this under q
pow I;Ir lens Is q revelation Of beauty not
Almost entrsS Of tho x most rs aelsats.
4. DEPTHS greater than $500 fathoms the
arising from exposure. for almost incalcula6ie
periods. to tho chemical action OF sea water. OF
finally results in the formation OF the red clay
deposits that are considered characteristic OF
OF lime whic h in the form OF the shells Of fora.
gerina ooze., is here almost entirely absent.
w M a vnr N ri n mi al anIxR ArA
and before any shell. large or small. Peaches
the bottom Of these tremendous abysms It 10
water N nat ersy Sssten f'o 1900 iAt he
o Tsss hs 70 s aeDth ~
more than one hSndred times that s susss sH
nothing could withstand it;..ir fact. heavy
apparatus are sometimes. on being drawn up
again to the surface found bent and collapsedi
as no no
strange forms oi lie. that never. save when
The work carried on by means Of the United
states Fish iat Commisson yes, vessel the Abatr9ss.
uefF %a! %4E ss's sa ths e
s' Sra this &c d'P aept.ns 300 wSse msIn
lilo seems absent. But still deeper. strange
to say. has been discovered an abun-
dant and varied fauna. new to science.
living undcr conditions Of tremendous
pressure. and paucity Of tho DEMONSTRATING
element OF oxygen. that induced an eminent
ZoOlogist 10 say quite recently: What We
know OF the greatest ocean depths forbids us
to expect to find them Inhabited BY living
lie the lks Of which no, no inhahitant q the
looked upon before the dredges OF the Chal-
lenRer. tho A.batross. tho Blake. and similarly
equipped vessels dragged M marine croa-
tures from congenial cold and dark.
1t might reasonably be supposed that these
denizens OF great sea depths would 10 built
moro firmly and strongly than surface anil
mails to resist the pressure of the element In
which they live. but II IL Just the contrary.
The most universal character l,tic Of those
is the looseness and labbiness OF
texture they exhibit. Indeed. they seem to
n sed the excessive pressure OF the water about
them to Keep their parts together for when
they are brought to tho surface they are ready
to fall TO pieces. 1t Is n problem, so strangely
are some Of them formed how they can move
from place to place: were they not entirely
below the disturbing element 81 wave action
they would to nll appearance. DO helpless
Inhabiting these abysmnl spaces. AS COM
pletely cut Off from communication with tho
upper waters as we ara from the inhabitants
OF other planets. we can only vaguely spscu-
late on their habits and Judge their manners
OF life from their some what remote analogies
to the surface species nearest akin to them.
Plant life Is entirely absent from their place
Of abode. aud although they doubtless prey :
upon each other. some original sources OF food
eupplY must. OF course. be cOnlecturel 10 exist.