The Alaska daily empire., 1915-08-18

By the end of the week the sunken steamship Islander may give up its treasure.
 w. J. Rogers, Seattle mining man, inventor and salvage expert, left Ju. neau at 4 o'clock this morning, for Marmion Island. eight miles from Ju- neau. O half-mile from where the Can adian Pacific liner which foundered fourteen years ago Saturday. Is be- Heved to be lying. "If she's there, I'll recover her gold, of that I am confident" Mir. Rogers told friends last night. The intrepid explorer Q week ago decided that he had locat- cd tho wreck. after his lead lines had brought up iron rust, and other drag lines had become fouled on the floor of Lynn Canal. indicating that the lost steamships grave had been located
 A hundred or more difficulties have hampered the Rogers expedition, and the search for the wreck in the steel shell which Is the adyenturer's own invention may reveal additional ob- stacles, but Rogers is as optimistic at Che prospect for success as is pos sibie under the circumstances, and those who have met him and talked with him are hoping that the gold which for years has lain at the bot tom Of the channel may become his.
 Prepared For Failure
 Mir. Rogers says he is prepared for disappointment TT am not success ful. l lose. that is all." he said last night But ] think am going to win. and am not going to give up searching until my resources are ex- hausted."
 Yesterday MT. Rogers descended 2so feet-about forty feet from the bottom of the channel. The dive was merely an experiment. to further test tho steel cylinder in which the ex- plorer expects to reach the wreck. Mir. Rogers returned to surface when he discovered @ small leak in the shen. "rhe aperture was SO small that you could not insert an ordinary match in 1t" he said. but decided that it should be repaired. so re- turned to the surface and came to Juneau to get some supplies" The leak was around the thick glass lens in the head Of the shell. through which observations are taken.
 Divine Boat Like Torpedo
 The Rogers submarine is @ cylinder not unlike the shape of a torpedo. It is % feet in length. is feet in dia- meter at one end and feet in diam eter at the other end, which is the head" It is through this head" that the work on the Islander will be done. Lights with a penetrating pow CT of 1000 candle power. are cluster ed on the cup-shaped peak, and inn mediately back of the lights are the lenses. At each side of the jaws arc the feelers. consisting of two steel arms. not unlike O huge pair of black smiths tongs. The feelers are oDer- ated through "stuffing boxes" pack ed to prevent leakage.
 The shell Is of 1A inch steel, rein forced by steel ribs. The boat com plete weighs 17 tons out of water and IF tons submerged. At 300 feet. the depth at which the Islander is believed to be lying, the pressure on the Rogers boat is about 1SC pounds per surface inch.
 The submarines air supply is self contained. and Mir. Rogers declares that he could remain in the shell. ai any depth up to a thousand feet without discontinue. He had thought it too risky to have the air supply come from the surface. through tubes and when he perfected the shell, he made provisions for supplying the air from the shell itself Two long steel cables are attached to the shell, and the latter is equipped with telephone connected with the surface boat which tends 1t. The barge Palmyra is an chored over the spot where Rogers small boats discovered iron rust She is firmly anchored. and will be used to guide the movements of the sub marine. The shell descenda of its own weight, but in order for 1t to be moved literally. the barge must be moved in any direction indicated.
 Purser Helped Explorer
 3lr. Rogers secured much valuable data as to the size and arrangement Of the Islander. from F. F. Bishop who was purser on the steamship when she struck floating ice on the morning of August 15. 1901. and sank while on her way to Victoria. from Skagway. Bishop Is now residing ir Victoria. and he gave the explorer a: