El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1916-06-24
Diving Experiments Of U.
S. May Bring 1t About;
Effect of Pressure.

Washington. D. c.. June 24--Mus-
All the millions Of dollars that now lie
al the bottom Of the sea in the form
OF ships and their sunken treasure be
forever lost to the worid3 Most Of
the vessels that have been sunk,
whether by accident or in the course Of
the present war, lie in com1aratively
shallow waters, many OF Them at
depth OF less than 200 seets and the
problem Of their recovery docs not seem
entirely hopeless in the light OF recent
improvements in deep-sea diving and
the feats accomplished BY he expert
divers Of the L. s. navy. The matter
is the subject OF an article in the
current number Of the Bulletin OF the
Pan American Union Washington. D.
g. In discussing the organization OF
companfes in the United States whose
purpose is the recovery Of some Of the
wealth now lying in the oceans depth,
The writer states-
Certain it is that the project OF re
covering sunken ships, or the most
valuable Of the treasures that have
gone down with them, Is more feasible
now than IL was only four or five years
ago Such great Improvements in div
ing apparatus have recently been made
that IL is now possible Tor dlVer 10
operate for a limited time even at
surface. At a depth Of 10 feet below
the surface, the pressure IS ass pounds
per square inch of surface Of the body
submerged This pressure Increases
proportionately. and at a depth OF 100
feet It has increased 10 4S-3 pounds and
az a depth OF 800 Ieet to 1893 pounds
Down 800 Feet.
Notwithstanding this tremendous
pressure, the expert divers Of the Z.
\ navy have succeeded IN not only
reaching a depth Of 500 TO sos feet, but
in remaining at that depth FOR from >
TO 20 minutes at time, making ex-
aminatiOns and observations in regard
10 a sunken vessel that made its sub
sequent salvage possible
The necessity Of having lie air
pressure within the diving dress COM
pensate the external water pressure,
thus subiecting the diver to pressure
which he descends. is the dangerous
element in deeD-sea diving AT depth,
for instance. Of 100 feet a diver must
be subjected TO a pressure OF atmOs-
pheres, or. 80 pounds per square inch,
I'm order TO compensate the external
water pressure Exposure TO such pres
sure is apt 10 be followed Dy danger
Gus physiological effects, commonly
known as -casion disease, the symp-
toms Of which include pain in the
muscles and joints, commonly called
bends deafness. embarrassed breath /
ing, vomiting, fainting. etc, sometimes
eeuALlnE IN 0HdLu
When the Pressure Hurts.
They do not appear while The pres
sure is being raised nor 90 long as
il is continued, but only after II has
been removed and the view now ac-
cepted is that they are due TO the |
rapid effervescence Of the gases which /
are absorbed in the body fluids during !
exposure TO pressure Experiment has (
proved that when the pressure is sud /
denly relieved. the gas Is liberated in 4
bubbles within the body. and that these ]
40 the harm Set free in the spinal /
cord, for instance. they may cause par I
tial paralysis. or in the heart lead 10
stoppage Of the circulation
1t has been found, however, that il ]
the pressure is relieved gradually the I
bubbles are not formed. because the 4
Eas comes out Of solution slowly and /
is got rid of BY the heart and lungs.
To prevent these effects. the Withdraw I
al Of the air pressure-in other words, !
the pressiOn-shOuld lee slow. I
Hence the divers ascent must be regu- /
lated. accordingly, and The deeper ne I
has been. the slower and longer must l
be the periods for decompressIon-
1T was particularly in regard 10 this 1
matter of decomposition thaC the ex-
perimenrs Of the L. :. navy department I
in 1914 led TO improved methods en- !
bling the divers TO descend to 500 feet /
below the surface"