The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-11-28
oFTHE DEEP SEAS.
WONDERFUL SPECIMENS BROUGHT
UP IN THE DREDGE.

Beautiful Follows ISey ond the Fewer or Art -
Initiate Taken Thousands or rect Below the
snrrnce-Hendiirhts nnd sideliEhta OF Their
Own for the INV oilers In sunless Depths.
Tho systematic study Of oceanic ichthy ology.
or that of the dccp-sca fishes, commenced
scarcely two decades ago, yet tho progressive
and interesting results, during 30 short n peri
cd, equal In value that OF any other study OF
nature. Twenty years ago only n few spoci-
mons OF fishes had hccn obtained, which from
their anatomical structure II was believed In.
habited abyssal depths. In 1885 Prof. Collctt
OF Christiania published u volume on the Nor
wegian North Sea Expedition" In 1887 DIR.
Gunthcr of the British Museum issued his
book, 1.-THE Dcop.Sea Fishes of the Challenger
Expedition" In 1888 DIR. Valiant of the Mu-
SCUM Of Natural History in Paris reported on
tho results OF the Travailleur and Talisman ex-
petition. and In the same year Prof. Alexander
Agassi2 published his work, Contributions to
American Thalnssography," the result of his
observations Of tho work of the United States
Coast Survey and Fish Commission. Since
then the deep sra work has boon practically
abandoned. but Goodc and Bean in 1895, I'M
der the auspices of tho Smithsonian Institution,
gave us their Oceanic 1chthyology,' a work
which discusses 'all forms OF fishes found in
tho seas Of The world" and gathers In system
attic form all previous knowledge of deep-sea
fishes. These publications are, however, strictly
scientific.
The efforts of these laborers in a compare
lively new fold have produced results not only
of great value to science, but OF much general
interest. 1t has been found that upward of
1000 species inhabit the waters of the great
oceans, Mt depths varying from 800 to 10, 500
feet. Many of these fishes were found to be-
modified forms of surface tyres. exhibiting alb.
normal shapes, sometimes grotesque and some.
times beautiful, with Respondent celebrations.
Many of them were dredgcd from n depth of q
mile or more, and. on being relieved from the
great pressure of the water. estimated to be
about a ton to each l 900 fathoms of depth, the
bony and muscular tissues were found so af-
fected by the expansion Of gas in their bodies,
that their flesh fell from the bones, which be-
came so soft that they were easily pierced by a
pin or other sharp instrument. This condition
could not exist when the fish were in their nat
ural habitat, us many of them werosknown to be
fiercoly rapacious, feeding upon their swift
motioned congeners, to capture which a strong
physical structure Of the pursucrs was an i'm.
perative condition.
As 1t is believed that the rays of the sun do
not, penetrate beyond a depth of 200 fathoms,
It necessarily follows that fishes living below
that depth must be possessed of auxiliary Or
gans. by which they would be enabled to see
and pursue their prey or seek their food on the
bottom. Hence We find many deep-sea fishes
with peculiar organs. luminous glands or plates,
situated on the head, tail, gill covers or di-
rersely on their bodies. One species OF the
genus -Ethoprora has a luminous gland, a