The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1899-05-24
Ocean Miners.

Some remarkable miners arc found
in the ocean delving into the hardest
rock. Some of them work in lime
stone coral; others penetrate the mud
DIV bottom and incase the shaft in
which they work with lime.
So far as its resemblance to miner
Of the land is concerned the shell
known as pholas is the most remarka-
BILE. as it is not only wonderful
miner, but also carries light, bright
and vivid, that seems to serve as a
miners lamp, and that has some In
teresting properties, one Of which is
that it shows in the water and in a
vacuum. and, while clear and distinct,
emits not the slightest heat.
The pholas is richly chased shell
about two inches in length, and has
the power Of boring holes in the hard
est rock as well as in clay, but, unlike
other miners, the pholas never comes
out Of the mine. By some means,
possibly by its rasping foot, possibly
by some secretion that dissolves the
stone, it gradually wears the stone
away and slowly and imperceptibly
enters. not in an undulating course,
for a few inches. Having reached
place Of safety, the miner begins to
enlarge It's lead or tube. This con-
tinues as the she'll grows, until finally,
if the pholas was capable Of appreciat-
ing it's surrounding, it would realize
that it was prisoner for life; that it
had bored into the rock and there
grown larger than the tunnel through
which it entered. The object Of this
miner is not to obtain riches, but to
find protection and security in its
granite cell, and with its light gleam-
ing at night no better imitation of a
human miner can be imagined.
Almost as remarkable is the mygel-
lus. The pholas is incased in shell
almost flint, but the mygellus is very
delicate and in all probability forms
its tunnel with the aid Of some dis
solving secretion. 1t pepetrates the
rock or object which it selects and
gradually throws out tiny tube which
is merely an extension Of the shell.
In some instances this tube is a foot
in length and marvellous example Of
the tube makers art. Its said that
a distinguished engineer obtained his
idea of tunnel from this shell.
These shell miners are notespecially
destructive. They bore very slowly
and usually attack stone: but there
are other miners which are inyeterate
enemies. of man in their efforts to
destroy wharves, piers and vessels,
chief among which is a little crablike
creature-Limnoria-that affects piers
and bores into the hardest lumber,
penetrating itin every direction; un-
til it presents the appearance Of a
honeycomb. So persistent are these
miners on the California coast that it
is necessary to repair docks and piers
once or twice year.
In tropical waters an equally de-
structive ocean miner is found in the
teredo, that penetrates the hulls of
vessels and woodwork Of all kinds.
AS it proceeds it encases its tube with
lime-like secretion, and in some in
stances the entire framework is eaten
away and replaced by the pearly de-
posit Of this miner, that constructs a
tube as carefully devised as the arch
of the human miner. A wreck strand
ed on coral reef, so high and dry
that one could walk around it at low
tide, showed the beams and planks
intact in many instances, but the hand
could be thrust through the apparently
solid planking in any direction, the
structure crushing in like pasteboard.
The interior wood had been eaten away
and replaced by the lime-like tubes of
this remarkable miner.
Among the worms are many singu-
lar miners that construct elaborate
tubes ten or fifteen feet in length, and
have lights upon their bodies with
which to illuminate the tunnel