THE 8EMI-WEEKLV TRIBUNE. NORTH PLATTE, NEBRASKA.
W03 m
INVENTOR OF SUBMARINE
AMERICAN MUSEUM JOURNAL gf
S.. I
1
Y
W I TO tlio tlmo of tho "Challenger"
H I expedition, vory little was known ro
U gardlng tlio flab llfo or tho abyssal
H--y depths of tho sea. Only about 30
I I finoclos wore known. Hut tho won
derful collodions brought back by tho
'Challenger" from hor four-year
crulno (1873-187G) rando known tho
vast dlvornity, tho strangonoss and
oven wolrdnoss Of this fish fauna.
fc"Voral hundred kinds of deep-sea flshos had
been collected somo of thom dredgod from a
depth of more than a mile and It required n
lingo quarto to describe and ptcturo them. From
this volumo dates our real knowlodge of tho
Halios of tho abyssal doop. Tho "ChalloiiBor"
expedition was, Inded, a "Columbus voyage" In
Ichthyology; It opened a now chaptor In tho his
tory of tho oclonco.
Slnco that tlmo many (loop-sen oxplorlng ex
peditions havo boon sent out by tho various na
tions, and h03ts of other ilshos havo boon
brought up from tho oceans In all parts of tho
world. More than n thousand spocleB aro now
known, and wo can npproclato nt Its full value
tho richness and strangeness of this fauna.
Moreover, not only do wo know tho flshos thorn
selves, but, as it result of tho sclontttlc Investi
gations carried on by thu various expeditions,
"wo now know n good deal of tho physical con
ditions under which thoy Hvo, so that wo can, In
n moasuro at least, oxplaln tho why and where
fore of their oxtrnordlimry characteristics.
Whon wo think of llfo In tho doop-sea, thoro
comos to mind, llrst of all, tho enormous pros
suro which those creatures must withstand.
This prossuro bocomos tho greater tho doopor wo
go down, and In tho profoundost depths It equals
thousands of pounds to tho squaro inch. Tho
rosult of this pressure 1b that tho tissues of Uiobc
fishes aro tondor and looaoly knitted togothor.
When thoy aro brought up out of tho dark
ilopths, and tho great prcssuro undor which thoy
lvo Is removed, tho explosion of tho gasos with-
(u thom bulges out tho oyes, and often blows out
ho viscora through tho mouth, while tho mus
clos collapso, leaving thom soft and flabby llko
Jnolst rags. Most doop-soa fishes aro very small
iIbo, usually only a fow Inches in longth, and It
Is probable that thla reduction in stzo has como
iibout, to somo oxtont .nt least, from tho great
prossuro undor which thoy live.
Another important condition la tho dimness of
light, or oven darknosB in tho profound depths
of the son. If wo lmagino oursolvoa descend
ing Into tho deep ocean, wo see tho light grow
dimmer and dlmmor as wo go down, until flnnlly
n lovol Is reached beyond which no light pone
tratos nt all, Tho entire vaBt depth bolow It, Is
In eternal darkness. Now tho flshos living In
this dim light, or in total darkness, havo boon
profoundly modified by it. In como forms tho
oyoa havo becomo vory small, and la somo cases
havo ontlroly dlsnpponred. Thoro nro even Ashes
In which tho- skin and scales of tho body hnvo
grown over tho plnco whore tho oyes should
be, bo thnt thoso flshos aro, ns has boon aptly
paid, "blind beyond redemption." Othor forms,
on tho othor hand, hnvo been nffoctod in an
entirely different way. Tho oyes, Instead of
growing smnllor, havo grown larger, as If In an
nttempt to catch ovory Hooting ray of light. In
some flshos this has boon carried so far thnt tho
oyes hnvo becomo liko enormous goggles,
i Most (loop-sou flshos hnvo luminous organs of
ono ktnd or another, so thnt thoy enrry their
own light about with thom. In some thu entire
body glimmers, tho coating of sllnio which
exudos from tho poroa and Intoral cnnnls, omit
ting n soft Bllvory glow. In others rows of ml-
Eute. luminous organs run nlong tho sides of tho
ody, or there are flashing light-spots on tho
head or face. What a wonderful sight would bo
to ub n small black flsh flitting through tho si
lonco and dnrknons of the dcop with its head
lights and row of pores gleaming through tho
darkness liko some small ship passing through
tho night with its portholes all aglow! 8omo
(loop-sea fishes hnvo n luminous organ at tho
end of a feeler on tho head.
A pcrtlnont question may bo asked; How do
we know these (IhIioh glow and glimmer, slnco
no human oye hat over behold thom In tholr
abyssal homo? Wo know this partly from anal
ogy and purtly from nctual observation. Whon
ono is in a boat In tho tropics, on ono of thoso
Bultry nights when everything is n (load calm,
unci thu black 'clouds hang bo low that sky and
sea form ono continuous blackness, then ono
may sco tho glimmering Ashes darting out of tho
path of the boat, holr forms, silvery and ghost
llko, outlined for ono moment against tho black
ness of thu soa, This effect is chiefly duo to
tho oxidizing of tho slimy socrotlon covering
tholr bodies Why Bhall wo not bollovo, then,
that In docp-Eca flshos a similar phenomenon
lakes place, particularly as hi muuy of thom
tho sllmo pores and canals nro creatlv ilnvninnori
and must exudo largo quantities of sllmo? Then
too, on deop-sea expeditions, on favorable occa
sions, ns for instance, n dark calm night, AbIios
that havo boon brought to tho "surface nnd placed
In water woro seen to flash light from tho ends
of tho tentacles or tho phosphoroscont pores,
precisely ns wo should havo expected from a
study of theso organs. Mnjor Alcock, In his
Interesting volume, "A Naturalist In Indian
Sons," montlons n specimen brought up from a
profound depth which "glimmered liko n ghost
as It lay dead at tho bottom of tho pall of tur
bid senwator." Ho that by Inference, as woll as
by nctunl observation, wo must bollovo that what
we call luminous organs In deep-sea Ashes, emit
light Into tho darknosB about them. In tho caso
of flshos totally blind, tho nbsonco of light Is
compensated for by tho" dovolopmont of enor
mous nntonnnollko foolers, modlfled from fln
rnys, so that these Aahos can feel their way,
a It woro, through tho darkness.
Tho nbsonco of light, however, entails another
Importnnt consoquenco. As Is woll known, no
plant life can exist In darkness. Thoro Is there
fore no vogotatlon of nny kind In tho profound
depths of tho son. Tho doop-soa flshos nro, In
conrcquenco, nil cnrnlvorous,, tho moro powerful
onos seizing nnd devouring tho weaker onos. It
Is a cold black world whom might reigns su
premo. Many hnvo enormous mouths, and for
mtdablo tooth to Insure holding tho proy. In
somo forms the tooth nro so lnrgo that tho mouth
cannot bo shut!
Tho tomporaturo of tho water In tho profound
depths of tho soa, Is always low and noar tho
freezing point. This Is truo ovorywhoro, ovon
nt tho equator. Undoubtedly this haa an offoct
upon tho flshos, although it is not yot known
what it is. Tho amount of oxygon dissolvod In
tho wntor nlso, Is much loss than In water noarer
tho surface. Tho breathing apparatus of tho
doop-soa flshos Is modlflt'd to suit tholr peculiar
conditions. Tho gill filaments hnvo become much
reduced In bIzo, nnd In a number of instances
Borne of tho gill arches bear no gill filaments at
nu. ino naiios aro apparently adapted to a
much nmallor oxygon supply than thoso living
m nvors or in mo siinllow Boa.
When wo think of the vast dlvorslty nmong
thoso flshos, tho question arlsos: Aro thoy all
representatives of n Blngle family or group that
hns bocomo spoclnlly ndnptod to llfo in tho doep
flea; or do they bolong to dirforont families or
groups? Ono need hardly bo nn Ichthyologist
to nnswor this question. Even a cursory exam
ination of tho rlates in a. work on deep-sea
flshos will show that dirforont typos nro repre
sented. In fact, n great mnny families aro in
eluded in tho doop-sea fauna. Thuro nro sharks
and rays; salmonotds, herrings, porches, -cols,
nnd roprosontntlvcs of many othor families. Wo
can oxplaln this heterogeneity among thom In
this way. Wo mny lmagino that Hshes of many
different kinds In tholr search, so to spoak, for
tho unoccuplod corners of tho soa. found a haven
In those doopor wators whoro thoy woro froo
from pursuit by tholr enemies. In tht course of
tlmo thoy migrated farthor and farther into tho
doep, n chango In habits taking placo pari passu
with tho changes In structure. Having started
out with dirforont organizations, and possessing
dlftoront dogroea of variability, thoy becamo dif
ferentiated In dlvorso dlroctlons, so that whllo
somo developed enormous mouths, poworful
teeth, or phosphoroscont organs, othors bocamo
bottom-living and pnrtly or completely lost tholr
eyos. still othors dovolopod long feelers for
groping their way through tho darkness. Now
and ngaln, howovor, flshos of separate groups
uuvuiupou similar structures, so that thoro aro
mnny sirming cases among deop-sea flshos
accomplish this group, but all tho
difficulties were overcome thanks
to tho Ingenuity nnd perseverance
of Mr. P. P. Hortcr of tho museum's
tnxldormlst stnff. Tho group, ns it
is now installed, represents ten
- nn rsf Iflnn.onn flalma If Ifl llOt.
of course, a group In tho senso of
tho hnbltnt groups displnycd In tho
museum; It Is not n section, so to
speak, taken from naturo and trans
planted to the muBoum. In naturo
so many ueep-sea nsues nru uui w
bo found In so small n spneo. What tho group
roprosonts is n number of fishes which nro in
naturo scattered over a vast nrea and through a
great height of water, hero brought together Tor
museum purposes Into a few squars feet or space.
Each flsh is reproduced nccurntoly with its phos
phoroscont pores nnd tentacles as "theso nro
known to exist. With ono or two exceptions
thoy aro enlarged several times, as the Ashes
themselves aro vory small. And slnco It Is known
that tho phosphorescent organs do not glow
with a steady light, tho Illumination of tho group
hns boon arranged bo as to havo theso luminous
organs flash Intermittently. Furthormoro, tho
Installation Is arranged so thnt ono mny view
tho Ashes for a few seconds In full light, ns It
In a synoptic exhibit, and then sco them, when
tho light goes out, as they aro supposed to appear
In tho darkness of tho profound depths, lit up
only by tholr own phosphoroscont organs.
Near tho top of tho group Is soon a flsh which
lives on tho border line between the region or
dimness nnd total darkness. Many ot tho flshos
living in this region aro not of a uniform somber
huo, but nro brilliantly colored. Nooscopelua Is
ono of these. Tho body is "ono dazzling shoon
of purple and sliver and burnished gold, amid
which Is a sparkling constellntlon of luminous
organs" (Alcock).
Tho glowing flsh In tho center 1b Barathronua
dlaphanus, a small flsh known from a single
spoclmcn, whlclr was dredged in tho Indian
ocean nt n dopth of n llttlo over four-fifths of a
mile. Tho modol of It is ono nnd one-half times
tho natural size. Tho phosphorescent Ash with
tho curious long tall (at tho right) Is Gigantura
chuni. It, also, is known by only a single speci
men. This was brought up from a dopth ot four
flfths of a mile In tho Gulf of Guinea, on tho
west coast of Africa. ' Tho model is twice tho
natural size.
Tho two dark flshos with enormous gaping
mouths (near tho top, at tho right) nro Gnstros
tomus bnlrdl. This species Is commoner thnu
aornn of tho others, n numbor of spoclmons being
In sovoral museums. Tho models of It in tho
group aro copied llfo-slze rrom a specimen In tho
museum. The species occurs In tho Atlantic
ocoan, near tho American coast, In tho path or
ocean liners. Spoclmcns hnvo been dredged from
a depth or nearly throo mllos.
Near tho bottom or tho group at tho lort-hand
sldo, Is seen an cclllko flsh with a lino of llt-up
porea. This la an enlarged modol of Styloph
thalmus paradoxus, a small silvery Ash widely
distributed in all tho oceans, whoso young also
aro known. Tho gonorlo anrno It bears was given
it in allusion to tho fnct thnt tho oyes nro
perched on long slondor tentnclos. Tho species
rnnges from n dopth of n llttlo less thnn a mllo
to two and ono-hair miles. Another form with
tentacles Is Gigantactis vanhooffonl. a spocios
typ cn of mnny deop-sea flshos which havo a
tentacle, terminating In a luminous organ, at
ached to tho head. This tentacle serves as a
uro for attracting proy. Tho present species
n 0!nn'yrHy tW 8iec,rac" which were
found In tho Indian ocoan at a mllo and a mllo
and n half from tho surface. Tho creature " a
times fl8U' U, 11,01,01 bC'ng on,arC(1 8l
HIS 8TATUS.
As a motorist, Is Jinks In tho running?"
Is ho? Ho ran up a bill for repairs, ran down
a woman In tho street, ran away from a running
comment of tho crowd and was run In by S
Ilcoman." 7
nt
what tho biologist calls "convorgonco." or paral
lelism. Tho musoum has rocontly prepared for exhi
bition a numbor ot typical doop-son flshos or
rangod in tho form of a group. Tho preparation
or this oshlblt Involvod many technical dlfllcul
tlos, such na tho modeling of tho flshos In trans
parent or translucont media, to nprosont thom
as gllramorlng or shining with llt-up "portholes."
Consldorablo experimenting was nocoasary to
NATURALLY.
"Tho now ldoa of rroshalr games la n,n
woll In tho Insane asylum, Isn't It?" worklnB
about It." nr JU8t
crazy
JUST IT.
If tho war continues for two years
England will hnvo to uso cargo-carrying
Submarines to Import food from
tho United States, In tho opinion of
Simon Lnko, submnrino Inventor and
president of tho Lako Torpedo com
pony, Bridgeport, Conn.
Captain Lako, whoso company is
constructing undersea boats for our
navy, is encouraged m this belief by
tho 5,500-mllo trip, on an Initial supply
of fuel, mado by tho G-3 of tho United
States navy.
"Tho G-3 mado that trip at a sped
of 11 knots ail hour," ho said. "At
reduced speed she can cover a greater
distance.
"Between 18 and 24 months from
now, should tho war run that long, tho
ships of the Teutonic allies will cIobo
tho seas to surfaco Bhipmcnta of food,
ammunition and other supplies from
this country to England. You can
readily boo thnt some other method of
. , , shipment will hnvo to bo adopted.
And why not tho cubmarlno? Secret stations will bo established on tho
English coast, from which long linos of mlnea will extend out In parallel
lines. Only the captains of tho submarines and tho officers at tho landing
stations will know the location Of. tllPHO mffina A ta1itna will tin
- ...... iiuiujio I' 111 Uli OUlIb 11 U1U
tho shore to watch for hostile submarines and, even should hostllo airships
duiuuu m locating mo sunmarino freight boats, thoy would bo unable to
destroy tho submarines unless they rose to tho surface."
THE SPHINX OF ITALY
SIgnor Sidney Sonnlno, Italy's
mlnlstor for foreign affairs, is known
in tho Italian press as "the Sphinx."
Ho has twico been premier and has
throe times declined the honor, ho has
been minister of flnance, has served
In tho diplomatic corps at Paris, Vien
na, Madrid, and has sat In parliament
34 years.
With this varied experience in
governmental affairs, ho was sought
by tho king to guldo tho cabinet in the
crisis brought about by tho outbreak
of war. Sonnlno declined, fearing, it
Is said, that ho would not bo able to
command tho necessary support in
parliament. IIo has always declared
ho "belonged neither to tho right, nor
to tho loft," meaning thnt ho ndopted
no policy of open support or opposi
tion to tho government. Ho 1b a lib
eral. Ho Is an exceedingly cultured
man, a good olassicnl scholar nnd a
distinguished commentator of Dante.
His knowledge of state affairs is complete, but ho lacks parliamentary ability,
His speeches aro cold and uninspiring.
HIGHLY HONORED WOMAN
For the first time in its history
Columbia university conferred tho hon
orary degreo of LL. D. on a woman
recontly. She Is Miss LoulBa Leo
Schuyler and sho was born In Now
York In 1837. Miss Schuylor was prom
inent in tho work of tho sanitary com
mission In tho Civil war. Slnco that
tlmo sho has been prominent In hos
pital and poorhouso work and sho
founded tho State Charities Aid asso
ciation in 1872. She established the
Bollovuo Hospital Training school for
nurses and sho has dono much other
notablo philanthropic work. M183
Schuyler is a great-granddaughter of
Alexander Hamilton aud of Gen. Philip
Schuyler of tho American revolution.
Although Miss Schuyler Is no
longer young, hor days of activity aro
by no moans over. It was only nlno
years ago that sho organized the first
committee in the United States for
aftercare of tho insano, nnd a year
lator she was appointed ono of tho
original trustees of tho Itussoll Sago foundation. In 1&08 sho organized
tho first commltteo in this country for prevention of blindness, and it was
composed of both physicians and laymen.
In addition to tho varied and coasoless activities already sketched, Miss
Schuylor has written voluminously upon tho subjects in which alio Is recog
nized as a leading authority.
GIVEN IMPORTANT POST
"Thnt motorist was developing railroad snood
whon tho cop got him." spooa
"I bco. A caso of arrested development"
When Secretary of State Lanstug
joloctod Frank Lyon Polk for tho
highly important position of counselor
of tho state department, ho picked an
accomplished lawyer nnd a man of
wide exporienco.
Mr. Polk is tho son of Dr. William
Mecklenburg Polk, dean of tho Cor
nell Medical school, the grandson of
tho Confederate blshop-genoral, Loonl
das Polk, and the grandnophow of
President Jnmos K. Polk. Ho wan
born In 1871 and was graduated from
Yalo in 1894. Ho studlod law at Co
lumbia Law school and was graduated
from thoro In 1897. In 1898 ho wont to
tho Spanish war with Troop A and
bocamo assistant quartermaster under
General Ernst with tho rank ot cap
tain. In 1908 he married Miss Eliza
beth Potter, daughter of Mr. and Mrs.
James Potter of Philadelphia. Thoy
havo three children.
Mr, Polk waB treasurer ot tho bu
reau of municipal research during
Mayor McClolInn's administration and a momber of tho Thomas Hott Os
borne Democratic Idngue in the early days of the Dix campaign. In January,
1914, ho was appointed corporation counsol of Now York by Mayor Mltchel,
his close frlond, Ho was riding with Mayor Mltchel last yoar when a grlev-anco-crnzed
man shot at tho mayor. The bullet mlssod Us mark and struck
Mr. Polk in tho left cheek.