St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1915-10-06
LIKE A SUBMARINE
The Fur Seal In Many Ways Re-
SembIeS an UnderSea Boat.
ITS HABITS IN THE WATER.

Submerged and Must Rise to tho
Surface Every Few Minutes, II Is a
Marvel of Speed.
We have come to regard the soaring
albatrOSS or the condor as the proto-
type of the aeroplane. When we look
for a natural model for the submarine
We find it well made in the body of the
fur seal and fully suggested by it's
method of progression in the sea, for it
travels there only when wholly sub
merged.
Unlike, however, the 'unterseebOte, :"
the fur seal is not fitted for swimming
on the surface; it only rises there to
survey, to breathe and to sleep. 1t
never attempts to swim with head
above water on any course, no matter
how short. 1t rises when undisturbed
or not alarmed, looks about with head
and neck well stretched up above the
surface of the sea, fills its lungs with
air literally compressed. turns its
head down and with its powerful an
terror hippers drives itself below the
surface to the depth of five or ten feet
then ahead on that level. Thus sub
merged the body of the seal glides
through the water as swiftly as a swal-
low in the ART is a vanishing streak
to our eyes.
How long it remains thus submerged
when travelling no one has any definite
knnVulndOn hI1f tho host nf
opinion gives it a rise at intervals OF
every three or four minutes to breathe
that is, a pause of less than two or
three seconds, with barely more than
its nose and eyes above the surface,
for exhalation and renewed inhalation
when down goes the trim body to
speed ahead again.
When our submarines were first
| brought out a trip of more than 300
miles from base was the utmost limit
of their cruising. Today they have
safely more than 5000 miles from that
base. Therefore in this connection it
is interesting to know that the fur seal
makes a submarine journey in the
north Pacific ocean of more than 5000
miles from its base on the PribilOf is
lands, in Boring sea, and then returns.
| An animal which can not only make
such an extended journey, but can
steer its course over an uncharted
waste from point to point, month by
month, with positive regularity and In
perfect time, must be a fine type of
swimming machine, and it is.
There is to be observed a close re-
semblance between the cigar shaped
submarine boat and the body form of
the fur seal. AS we view them lateral
ly, this resemblance is complete. They
are both driven ahead by feathering
screws, and they are both kept On the
level of their submerged course at a
given distance below the surface by
rudders.
Then we observe that the periscope,
to which the submarine craft owes all
Of its efficiency, is duplicated exactly
by the seals nose and eyes and which
are all that it ever lifts above the sur
face when startled and in fight Of
passage.
Again we note that the fur seal as
a submarine has a great advantage
over the human boat-it has eyes that
can look ahead and around under wa
ter-hOw far we do not know, but it
is reasonable to assume that the seals
eye can see as far under water as the
eye of a camera can, which we have
the evidence of in good records.
Then, too, it also has an acute sense
Of hearing under sea, for we know that
the whirring of a propeller's screw
will drive all the seals away for miles
around steamer We know that be-
cause some of the early pelagic seal
ing vessels were fitted with small aux
iliary screws, and these, when put into
use, had to BE removed.
With reference to the powers of de-
structiOn, of course our fur seal boat
has no torpedo tubes, but it can and
does ''shOOt it's mouth off, at fish with
deadly certainty.
In this connection it is interesting to
note that seals do not catch fish by
pursuit of them-not at ALL They
shoot down from above upon the backs
or up from below to strike at the bel
lies of their fnny prey.
How fast these phOcine submarines
can speed up under the stimulus of
excitement or fear no one knows. But
it is well known when a vessel is com
ing down before a gale of wind from
the islands, logging fourteen to sixteen
knots, that a bevy of fur seals will of
ten follow the ship for hours and re-
peatedly swim by it, swim around it
and then renew the chase and circling
of it.-Henry W. Elliott in New York