SECRETS OF THE DEEP.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXV, Issue 2058, 1 May 1907, Page 4

SECRETS OF THE DEEP.

FATE OF SHIPS THAT SINK.

What becomes of tho ship that sinks in mid ocean? If it is of wood, it takes, in tho first place, considerable time for it to reach the bottom. In one hundred or more fathoms of water a quarter of an hour will elapse before the ship 'reaches bottom. It sinks slowly, and when tho bottom is reached it falls gently into tho soft, oozy bed with no crash or breaking. Of course, if it is laden- with pigiron, or corresponding substances, or if it is an iron ship, it sinks rapidly, and sometimes strikes the bottom with such force as to smash it to atoms. Once sunken a ship becomes tho prey of tho countless inhabitants of the ocean.

They swarm over and through tho groat boat, and make it their home. Besides this, they cover every inch of the boat with a thick layer of lime. This takes time, of course, and when one generation dies another continues the work, until filially tho ship is so laden with heavy encrustations, corals, sponges and barnacles that, if wood the creaking timbers fall apart, and slowly but surely are absorbed in the waste of the sea bottom.

Iron vessels are demolished more quickly than those of wood, which may last for centuries. The only metals that withstand the chemical action of the waves are gold and platinum, and glass also seems unaffected. No matter how long gold may be hidden in the ocean, it will always be gold when discovered, and this fact explains the many romantic and adventurous searches after hidden submarine treasures lost in shipwrecks.