The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1900-04-10
The Holes of the Sea.


| over the achievement Professor Alex
ander. Agassiz reports it from the South
| Seas, where ne is cruising in command
| of the United States fish commission
steamer Albatross, engaged in the bus
mess Of surveying the floor of the Pa
! cific. Up to the present time no trawl
| net has ever been lowered beyond three
miles, but in this instance the deep sea
| dredging apparatus of the government
vessel was sunk over five miles beneath
| the surface Of the waves. The haul was
| made not far TO the south of the Tonga
| Islands.
1t is true that the animals brought up
were only deep sea sponges, but they
| suffice to suggest the existence in that
abyssmal region of much higher forms of
life. That huge shorks, some of them
as much as seventy feet long and shaped
like eels dwell at depths as great as
three miles is positively known, and the
same may be said OF certain large cephal-
opods or poulps; these and other mon
strous creatures are occasionally found
floating on the surface of the sea.
Why, then, should it not be supposed
that strange fishes and other uncanny
geological specimens inhabit the more
profound caverns of the ocean? 1t is
the belief of Professor Agassiz that they
do. Some authorities are even of the
opinion that some gigantic species of rep
tiles, properly belonging to bygone geo.
logic epochs, such as the ichthyosaur and
plesiosaur-the latter resembling in ap-
pearance an enormous snake threaded
through the body of turtle-may yet
find lurking places in those black and
dismal marine abysses.
A short distance southwark of the
place where this wonderful dredge was
made the Penguin an Australian survey
vessel, found not long ago the deepest
hole ever discovered in any ocean, bar
ring only that recently fathomed by the
United States steamship Nero between
Guam and Manila. This cavern was
struck off the Kermadecs, 800 miles north
of New Zealand, and the sounding line
registered 30,990 feet, or nearly six miles
The name Tonga-Kermadec Deep has
been given to. it, and. on his way over
those seas, Professor Agassiz thought it
worth while to drop a line for the sake
of confrmatory evidence. He got $4,000
feet in one spot, and then decided not TO
try again, the strain on his apparatus
being too great.
The Nero, surveying the proposed cable
route between Guam and Manila, struck
a hole, to which the name Nero Deep has
been given, that was 81, $50 feet in depth
only 80 feet short of six miles. This,
in fact, holds the record TO date. Along
the east coast Of Japan extends a great
marine valley which continues on across
the North Pacific, skirting the Aleutian
Islands. Through this valley rushes the
Japan current, corresponding to the gulf
stream of the Atlantic, which makes
warm the climate of southern Alaska
All along it remarkable depths are found,
the greatest of these being south of the
Aleutian chain, where soundings consid-
erably exceeding five and a half miles
have been made. Next in respect to pro-
fundity come the big hole close to Porto
Rico, on the north side of the island
and another on the south side of Cuba,
Immediately above which Admiral Samp-
sons feet lowered for so long while
waiting for Cervera to come out of the
bottle.
These are the principal known holes
on the ocean floor. and it is not likely
that any deeper ones exist anywhere.
Fifty years ago nothing worth mention
ng was known about the depths of the
sea, and it was even imagined that it
might be 100 miles deep, or more, in
spots But definite knowledge on the
subject is being steadily acquired by sur
Sam at the present time has
he Nero and Rlbatross engaged in this /
work. A century from now the toDog-
apply of the bottom of the seas all over |
he world will be mapped with a fair de- /
gree Of completeness in a general way, |
20 as to show all the principal mountains |
md valleys and the soundings along lines |
If traffic. Already it seems strange to /
consider that only half a century ago |
nothing was known about the physio- /
graphic contous Of three-fourths of the |
.arth's surface.
The Nero found a temperature Of tiir- /
y-six degrees Fahrenheit in the depths |
# the Pacific, which was a record for |
old, but the Albatross has beaten that |
n 1900 feet Of water, to the north of the
darquesas, Professor Agassiz struck a
'ottom temperature Of thirty-four de-
,rees and a fraction-only a little over
wo degrees above freezing point
One Of the most interesting facts ascer-
aimed within recent years about the
epths Of the ocean is that the tempera-
ure three miles or so below the surface,
ghere the water has no motion what
Yer, remains about the same all the
ear around, being never much above
reezing even al the Equator. Professor
gassiz says that the dredgings he has
made thus far on this expedition Indicate
hat animal life is not so plentiful in the
cry deep basins as has hitherto been !
imposed. This does not imply that there
j 2 ~ GA4iAliAAo even III b44C II4OSl DlplONllQ
bysses, but merely that the fauna is
scanty.
The fish commission recently has been
citing togeter a collection of Leaf hers
made from the skins of fishes and other
quatic animals. 1t is not only of in
crest to the curiosity-seexer, but is in
ended 10 have a practical value. show
lg incidentally what may be done with
ne outer coats Of many creatures whose
ides are commonly esteemed worthless
lready the worlds supply Of leather de-
lved from land animals does not equal
he demand so that the utmost Efforts
re being made TO discover or manufac-
ire some sort OF available substitute
ut hitherto nobody seems TO have !
bought Of utilizing the material az
1rded by creatures that live In the wa I
Several kinds of fishes have skins that ,
lake excellent leather for some purposes.
or example, salmon hide serves so well
this way that the Eskimos Of Alaska
AXE waterproof shirts and boots on. !
Tin fact. even whole suits OF .
othes. They also cut jackets out Of cod
sh skins, which are serviceable gar
ents. Already frog skins are coming
to use for the mounting OF books.
here an exceptionally delicate material !
Y fine bindings is required.
Most people do not utilize how tough
e outer coats OK some fishes are. There
e certain tribes OF ssvsges who make s
-east-plates out % garf.h skins. which a
III turn any knife or spear: a bullet
III pierce them, but il is Impossible 70
Top through the material WITH q Ratchet :
one blow. Together with such a q
east-plate IS worn q helmet Of the :
in Of a porcupine fish. which Is COW 9
ed with Printable spines- Fastened
ION the head. It serves not orly a. a Z
election but 70 butt with. :
Al isinEiess and glue manufacturing =
mpany recently made up some SHOES =