The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1896-05-02
FOUND IN A WELL.
Underground Creatures That Interest
the Men OF Sciencs.
Washington Letter to Boston Tran
soript.)

Washington Letter to Boston Tran
script
Geological experts at the Smithsonian
Institution are busy studying and in
venting names tor the strange animals
cast up by the wonderful artesian well
at San Marcos, Texas. Some of them
have been forwarded to Washington in
bottles and jars, and much excitement
has been occasioned among government
scientists. They declare that this is the
most remarkable discovery of sbterranean
life ever made.
| The government contemplatss the es-
ablish ment of fish hatchery at San
Marcos, for the propagation of black
bass, catfish and other pond fishes. Bor-
ing was begun for the purpose Of obtain
ing water, which was struck in plenty
at depth of 1873 feet In fact, when that
point was reached the drill suddenly
dropped four feet.having evidently reached
big cavity, and out poured vigorous
stream. The stream is still flowing at a
steady rate of l, 100 gallons minute,
and it bids fair to keep on indefinitely.
The cavity struck by the drill was
undoubtedly the tunnel of a subterrane
an river. That the waters of this under
ground stream was full of life is satisfac
torily proved by the great number of
animals of various kinds which are
thrown out at the surface through the
artesian pipe. But it is not their guam
tity that excites astonishment nearly so
much as thier starnge character. All of
them appear to belong to species hitherto
wholly unknown to science. There are
shrimps Of queer kind, Of which the
well yields about half pint day on
an average; sowbugs of a new genus,
not related to any hitherto fou nd in
fresh water, and, most remarkable of all,
salamanders six inches long, with sur
prisingly developed legs.
Where does the river come from? That
seems to be the first question. 1t is a
my stery up to date. In that region the
phenomenon of the ''lost" river is fire.
quent and familiar. Such stream runs
merrily for distance and then sinks
into the ground, perhaps it may reap
pear further on and disappear again.
The superstition is that the subterranean
river in question Is continuation of
some river that has got itself lost far to
the north. The geographical strata in
the neighborhood of San Marcos dip
southwar toward the Gulf of Mexico
and it is believed that there exists at a
higher level hidden cavern of consid-
earble size, through which the stream
runs. This undiscovered cavern, with
no visible opening from above ground,
furnishes the necessary supply of air to
the creatures that live in the water that
flows through the tunnel.
From any point of view the discovery
is quite extraordinry. All of the species
of animals thus far brought to the sur
| face are blind and colorless, resembling
in those respects the crustaceans and
| batrachians of the great, caves, whore
| there is everlasting night. DR..
| Stejneger. who knows as much about sal
amanders as any man living, has been
making special study of the San Mar
COS specimens. He finds that they have
no near relatives with which science is
acquainted in this country or abroad.
| Their nearest of kin are the so-called
mud-puppies Of our streams and certain
batrachians of Austrian oayerns. They
have remarkably long legs and their
| noses are shoyeI-shaped.
| 1t is likely that DR.. Stejneger will put
these salamanders on record as represent
| ing not merely a new genus, but new
family in the order of batrachians. One
Of the females laid five eggs after it was
| caught. The scientists are waiting with
interest for some fishes to come out of
the wonderful well. They are sure to
turn up sooner or later, it is believed,
because they are not at all likely to be
absent where there is SO much food for
them in the shape of shrimps, etc. per-
haps they also will prove TO be Of an en-
tirely new species. 1t should be remen-
bered that, the source of supply being
inaccessible, the only animals thus far
secured are those which have been
brought to the surface of the ground by
the merest chance. There would surely
| be good fishing in that subter'anea u
river, if one could get at it with hook
and line
Most numerous by far among the Great
ures cast up from the depths have been
the shrimps. They are about three
quarters of an inch long, colorless and
blind. In and attached to their bodies
are found immense numbers of parasitic
protozoa, which are nearly related to the
organisms that breed malaria in
the human system. This fact has an
interesting bearing upon the theory
hitherto accepted that artesian water is
necessarily free from malaria microbes
The sowbugs, already referred to, which
are crustaceans, have only been familiar
up to now as salt water forms. They get
living commonly by attaching them
selves 10 fishes, out OF whose flesh they
are able to take large bites by means of
their strong jaws, which are furnished
with sort of knife and fork arrange
ment. One small and new species of
| laeoh turned I'D with the rest of tha an