DIVING FOR SALVAGE.

Taihape Daily Times, Volume XI, Issue 3376, 3 January 1920, Page 7

DIVING FOR SALVAGE.

SUCCESS OF JAPANESE. l Britain’s prestige throughout the world never stood higher than at the close of the great war, but in at least one of the post-war activities the Briton has to take a back seat. That is as a deep-sea diver in the Work of salving vessels which have been sunk by mine or torpedo It is here that the Jap. comes out‘ on top. The Japanese diver can des-I cend to a greater depth than the British diver, and,‘what is more, he will remain longer under the water without apparent injury to health. ' ‘ This is no mere lb-oasting claim by the Japanese themselves; it is the, rueful but truthful admission of an expert with a long association with' marine salvage work_ Few Japanese divers are engaged at work round the coasts of Britain,.their -activities in this direction being mostly confined to the Mediterranean. ' . The greatest depth at which a British diver can Work under water, without doing himself a serious injury is froni 20 to 22 fathoms-—tha.t is, at the most, 130 ft. below the surface. Even then our divers can remain only a coniparatively short time at that depth, and they a.re obliged to descend ‘ and ascend very slowly to prevent the blood from gushing from their bodies. V In some of the Government salvage ships whatdis known as a de-compress-ing chamber-‘is now provided, which the diver on ascending can enter and gradually become acclimatised to the natural atmosphere on the surface. A Japanese diver can work with comparative comfort at a depth of 27 to 28 fathoms, or nearly 170 ft. below the point where the salvage ship is moored, and as a rule. he is not in such haste to give the signal to be hoisted up as his British colleague. Eastern fastalism enters largely in—. to the composition of these Japanese divers, and on this account the yellow ,men are inclined to take risks far be‘ llow the surface which British divers no less intrepid, would hesitate to take. Unexpected danger often confronts the deepsea diver who has located a wreck which has been ‘sent to the] bottom by torpedo. The pressure of the water fre—. quently has the effect of erunipling up liarts- of the vessel“ near the spot where the torpedo has shattered the sides, and sometimes even an ordinary touch will cause part of the splintered hull to collapse. The danger in such, circumstances of being enveloped fey’ a mass of wreckage is ever present.’ but deep—sea' divers, British and Jap-' anese alike, anticipate such possibilities with wonderful pr-escience.——«S_F., in Daily Mail.