El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1919-10-15
MAY BORE INTO
EARTH CENTER
British Scientist Has No
Fear It Would Open A
Death-Dealing Volcano.


Bournemouth. Eng, Oct 14-Jules
Verne imagined and described q
journey TO the center Of the earth
and 4 G. Wells dipped lightly into
the Interior Of the moon.
Il has been left for the president OF
the British association to propose IN
che cool and calculating manner Of a
scientific engineer a real expedition
Of discovery into the depths Of the
earth's crust ANY one except sir
Charles Parsons, ~lo proposes to dig
down for u miles or more into the
world would perhaps be received with
q smile IN creuulity- de has ALREADY
achieved the next 10 impossible in
his marvellous turbine engine, with
lts millions Of blades. and what he
says matters.
sir Charles has not merely proposed
that such a great dig should be IN
dertaken. bul be has drawn up a
plan Tor the work. He does not pin
himself 10 any definite area for
opera lions. Volcanic rocks, he thinks.
would be the most promising for q
oeeinnings but they are scarce in this
country.
There IS. in addition to the pros
pect Of tapping some natural source
Of earth power, as, for instance high
pressure steam the possibility OF
coming on new stores OF metal such
as platinum. One Of the questions TO
De Laced is whether at a great depth
the earth would crush into the shaft,
because j Is real mine shaft and
not merely q narrow tube bore that
he proposed
Sir Charles tells ne that realistic
apartments made on granite blocks
by 4'rof Frank Adams. Of lIcGTu uni
Eerslty, Montreal show that below a
depth OF 80 miles the granite would
begin TO soften Up TO that depth
norlng u granite would probably be
practicable- he would be satisfied
with u mile shaft
The earth's deepest shaft at present
Is IN South Africa and IS a little more
man nile deep. The grea9 dig
presents no difficulties which cannot
oe overcome by the ordinary methods
OF inning engineers. The first point
would be TO choose q district free
rom water bearing strata to avoid
pumplng- The shaft would be OF che
width usual in coal mines II would
be sunk IN sections each shout half
nile deep and each section would
have its machinery worked BY cleo
JEiclty LOT dealing with that partic-
ular section
One Of the main problems 10 be
dealt with is that OF air pressure. At
r miles the air pressure would be in
rolerable. but Sir Charles would cut
of the air pressure by means Of air
locks placed at ever. second or third
la---E the ElNEu AT Two OF
three miles the atmosDheric pressure
would be about double that Of the
surface. In each division OF two or
three miles the air pressure would
be normal Immediately below the air
lock. while at the bottom OF each di-
vision it would be equal 70 two at
-nospheres.
Air would be passed through the
air locks by means Of pumps coupled
10 air engines worked by electric mo-
tors BY means OF these air locks the
miners would be able to breathe with
compare tive comfort however deep
the shaft might 60
Air pressure IS not the only cues
tiou- There IS the great problem Of
overcoming the heat The deeper
down the hotter the earth. and at u
miles down the heat would be chok-
ing SIP Charles has also thought
OUT e method Of circumventinE this
difficulty The scheme Is rather in
Tricats 20 describe There would be
larEe steel pipes forming an 'up-
asst and q "doWncast" They would
Pc connected AZ the TOP and bottom
each half mile section FL a closed
I7g filed with brine This would
r rs heat carrier. and the cfrcu7a-