The Savannah morning news., 1902-02-09

I walk the streets on land" said AL
fred Phalberg, who has spent more
than $4,000 hours of his life at the
bottom of the ocean. 81 use no
searchlight but the eyes God has given
me, and opticians tell me they are re-
markably strong. When you first
strike the bottom of the sea- he ex-
planned, its like entering a dark cav
ern; alls densely black. Gradually
shapes are defined, and soon every
thing grows distinct, If not familiar.
l prefer to dive at night. It's better
for the eyes. Sudden passage from the
dark of the deep to the light of day
is injurious to the sight. The moment
diver raises his helmet a bandage
is put over his eyes for some moments,
otherwise he would soon become
blind"
A bright. clean-skinned, clear-eyed,
sparsely built man of 54 is this diver
of unrivaled record.
At years of age he put out to sea
from his Norseman home. While yet a
boy he was a sailor ON a schooner
wrecked in Long Island sound. The
schooner was bringing stone to build
the Brooklyn bridge. That was in 1872.
II had in the pocket of my coat that
went to the bottom with the schooner"
said Phalberg, "an order on the pay
master for $160-all the money that l
had earned in the New World, and
which l had planned to take back with
me to my mother in Sweden.
Bring up the order, Captain" 1
cried to the Master Diver as he was
about to leap into the sound in search
of the sunken schooner. you'll find it
in the inside pocket of my coat hang
ing back of the door in the aft"
The old diver chuckled at the mem
ory of his boyish ignorance, for well
he knows now the pranks the sea plays
with the insides of sunken ships.
Doubtless his old coat served the
waves for a golf ball, and some shark
cashed his order on the paymaster!
Phalberg made his first professional
dive at Race Rock lighthouse when
the bed rock was being laid.
Il staid down an hour and a half"
he said. ut seemed a century. l was
scared to death. 1t felt like being
smotllered between two feather beds. l
wanted 10 come UP at once, but pride
kept me down. ] knew that my COM
panions would laugh at me and call
me a coward. No Norseman could
stand that The second day / staid
down a little longer, and at the end
of a week / could hold my own with
the best of them"
Two hours is the average time that
a diver can stay under water without
coming to the surface. Frequently
Phalbcrg has worked seven hours un-
der % feet of water without being
hauled up. He knows only one diver
who has outdone him-his master the
captain. who has been down seven
hours and a half.
To raise wrecked vessels repair them
while under water, recover drowned
bodies and lost treasures, and blast
rocks that threaten destruction to wa
ter craft or obstruct the building OF
bridges are the work OF the diver. "I
am ready" said Phalberg. ito go
down at any hour, day or night, In
storm on calm"
once the iron helmet. which weighs
40 pounds. ~ fastened tightly down
over the shoulders OF his rubber suit
his waist fncircled with the lead belt
~ 80 pounds weight his feet incased
in solid Iron shoes Of 20 pounds each.
the lifeline adjusted 10 the pipe in the
back 0f the helmet and he takes the
leap into the sea, hls every heart beat
~ IN the hands of the man az the NE
line.
"For ~ years" said Phaibsrg, my
life line wEs handled by the same man.
he WIS quife on Old fellow, and had
been ail DIE life a pearl diver o. know
fnc Hrn bf heart. and waF always alive
40 his eWfu responsibility. hlnes his