Daily camera., 1898-07-29
SUBMARINE PHOTOS.
Pictures Have Been Taken Success.
fully Under Water.
Artificial Light Can Be Employed
Great Benents May Be Obtained
In the Examination Of
Sunken Wrecks.

covered by water is vast, since it by far
surpassesf that of the dry land. What
do we know Of this part of the globe
hidden by the seas and oceans? Very
little, it must be admitted. Except along
the immediate edge of these immense
bowls which can be explored in diving
oells, the means which naturalists have
1T their disposal for the examination
OF these depths are most rudimentary
Nobody can go down into them, as the
tremendous pressure of the water rem
ders this impossible. For long time,
therefore, it was imagined that the
bottom of the sea was one vast extent
cf mud, without the presence of living
,hings; but numerous scientific eXpedi-
tions finally proved that such was not
the case, and that a multitude of curl
Gus and even fantastic animals were
to be found there.
The product of even a single catch,
including many sharks, as made by US
at the Arago laboratory, convinced me
that at the depth of 500 meters the bot
tom of the ocean is full of life. All these
big sharks (Centrophorus ganulosus)
are carnivorous. In order to live these
animals must eat other animals; so
there must be many other animals
whence these come, although we know
almost nothing about them.
AS regards the sea, the naturalist is
in the same situation as would be an in
habitant of the moon who could live in
the ethereal space, but could not breathe
the air which envelops our earth. Let
us suppose that this voyager from the
ethereal regions should come in contact
with our atmosphere. He would float
above the highest strata without being
able to penetrate them, separated from
the earth by the gases which surround
it. What must he do if he wishes to
know something of what exists below
the layers of cloud which hide our globe
from his view? He would do as our
naturalists have done - construct
dredges and nets, and, having weighted
them, would let them down like the
anchor of balloon, and try to pull them
along the surface of the earth. Do you
think that with such primitive instru-
ments he would obtain very precise
ideas of the terrestrial globe? Every
agile animal would flee before the APP
paratus, which, if it did not get ire
trievably caught in some oak, rock or
lofty factory chimney, might bring
back, after having scraped for some
time along the surface Of the earth, bits
of leaves, pebbles mingled with soil,
etc, all of which, however, could give
only a very vague idea concerning the
constitution of the globe.
Up to the present time our natural
lists have done hardly more than this.
Though it is quite true that the appa-
ratus used is as perfect as possible,
and that the most illustrious students
of nature have displayed in their abors
an ingenuity which / should never
dream of calling into question, at the
bottom the proceeding is the same in
both cases. They drag the rudimentary
instruments blindly through the depths
Of the seas.
What change will come over the sit
uation the moment it becomes posi-
BILE to let down to the bottom of the
ocean Photographic apparatus provid-
ed with a powerful artificial light! Al
though this camera will not be able to
bring back pictures of wide extent, may
it not succeed in satisfactorily photo
graphing 100 square meters of space?
And will not such photographs contain
4 most precious fund of Information?
Everything leads one to believe that
it will soon be possible to construct
Photographic apparatus which will ac-
eemplish its work successfully at any
depth of water: But without going so
far as this, and without launching
forth into the hypothesis which have
not yet been realized, it may be assert
ed that submarine photography can al
ready produce useful results.
In the immediate vicinity of the
coasts the photographing of landscapes,
the interiors of grottoes, animals
caught in their medium, furnishes the
student useful and precious informa-
ton; and from an industrial point Of
view one may see how it can be en-
ployed practically. Suppose, for in
stance, ship to be at the bottom of
the sea. How are we to know its exact
position, and to determine the extent of
the damage which 1t has suffered? A
good submarine photograph would be
more valuable to the engineers than all
the information which divers could fur
Louis Boutan, in Century.
Solar Facts and Figures.
Natter weighing one pound on the
moons surface II transferred to the