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» -An. English r
. -Pain from something in: his eye
-. “able to remove,
'., pital in London
‘ating just. above the eye, removed a blade of
"* grass 11-2
‘it had grown.
i Is designed to be d
ae we tn
. . : co.
eet
: SO FAME AND FORTUNE WEEKLY -
POINTS OF INTEREST
i
~ GRASS GROWS. IN EYE Coa
farm laborer, suffering intense
that he was un-
visited the Gloucestershire Hos-
for. relief: A surgeon, on oper-
inches long and the seed from-which
he grass, nurtured by the nat-
ural moisture of. the eyeball, was quite green by
reason of the light penetrating the eye.
> ;
PROPELLERLESS PLANE
With aviation still in its infancy, inventors are
busy on different types of machines, one of which
iven by the escape of gases
in the rear; instead of by a propeller. The idea
is not new, but heretofore it. has been considered
too inefticient. . t
is reported to have overcome the main difficulties
and to have interested the government in his
efforts.. -
THE ESKIMOS DREAD WATER
The Eskimos are’ dependent upon the sea for
everything they eat and for all the clothes they
wear, but none of them know how to swim. This
seems strange at first, but becomes less mysteri-
b ous when we take into account the fact that in
the Arctic Ocean the temperature of the water is
never above the freezing point. 'The natives of
that region guard against the danger of drowning
by making the covering of the boats so tight
about the body of the fisherman that there is no
leakage, even if they do happen to overturn. .
. When’ the Kite was in McCormick Bay with
the party of Lieut Peary, one of the crew took
2 swim which is described by Dr. Keely.
“After we had returned to the ship, Mr.
Verhoeff declared that the water looked so pleas-
ant that he would swim from the ship to the
shore and back again. Those who heard the as-
op sertion attempted to. dissuade him, pointing to
the numerous icebergs-which floated. about. in
every direction: :
thought that a single plunge would serve to make
him change his mind. . _
_ “Meanwhile a crowd of curious natives had
fathered around and were gazing at him in mild
astonishment. Finally he took the plunge, and
"at once. started, swimming vigorously for the
shore.
“Alarmed for his safety,’and fearing that a-
cramp might overtake him, I jumped into Mr.
.Carsten’s little boat, which was moored alongside
the ship, and followed him, being prepared to-~
render assistance~if-it was needed. He reached
the shore in safety, however, and turning reso-
lutely around, swam back to the vessel, a distance
of about two hundred yards. . .
“He«received, of course, an: ovation, but ‘was
“almost at once taken with a chill which at one
-; time looked serious. A vigorous rubbing re-
“. Stored his circulation to
a brief rest made him-as well as ever.
regarded, however, as-a foolhardy feat and one
: that none were anxious to emulate.
its normal condition, and
‘ It was
Now, however, a French inyentor*
. ably
Even when he strivped we all
1
“The effect on the natives of a sight. of the
Swimming man was most curious. They regarded
him with constantly groWing astonishment. In
Greenland the only use they. know for water is
for drinking purposes. Probably. many of them
had> accidentally fallen into the water, but they
dread and hate its effects as much
——_
NAVY DIVING DRILL UNCOVERS WRECK
OF SPANISH PRIVATEER ,
A course of instruction in deep-sea diving is
part of the regular drill at the Naval Training
Station at Newport and the amateur divers often
meet with interesting adventures in descending
} Narragansett Bay. They amuse
themselves in catching the huge flounders that lie
in the cove, adding fresh fish steak—or miscalled
menu. :
While hunting flounders a diver, Hill by name,
recently. happened upon the remains of an ancient
Spanish ship submerged in mud to the gunwales,
but still in a wonderful state of preservation con.-
sidering the years that had passed since she sank
at the entrance to the bay, where she was prolj--
seeking refuge either from a storm or an
enemy. - . .
The stern was buried under mud and shells but
the bow was slightly above the bay’s floor, Though
the rotten timbers were -thickly covered ‘with
marine parasites of all kinds the outline of the
hull was largely intact and the entrance to the
cabin easily found.’ The crumbling deck was hid-
den under many feet of ooze but the divers dis-
covered and raised to the surface six small. bronze
cannon, deeply pitted with salt water, and sev-
eral iron spikeheads badly carroded. From the
cabin they salvaged two beautifully-shaped bronze -
vases and half a dozen bottles of wine bearing ©
the seal of the King of Spain and the date 1640:
The divers opened all the bottles in the hope of
finding one that contained drinkable wine but all.
had undergone a sea change. The contents was _
flat_and unpalatable. The. wine had been,. no
doubt, part of the captain’s private stock. The
divers were eager to continue the exploration of
the interior of the wreck but the commandant
decided that it would be: unsafe. “So torpedoes
were placed under the bow and the wreck was
destroyed: . CT :
There. is no record’ of any vessel having been
sunk at the entrance to Narragansett Bay. That
is strange, for the wreck was either a privateer
or a pirate and undoubtedly a Spaniard.
vases may have been* loot from another ship or
perhaps from some village raided by the stranger.
-After careful inspection of the relics from the
mysterious wreck the officers at the training sta-
tion decided that the ship. was a Spanish privateer
cruising in New. England waters during Queen
AAnne’s War, 1702-1704, between the French and
English in America as-a result of the Spanish
succession, ‘and sent to the bottom by_an English
vessel from which it was plying under full ai
for Newport Harbor, where it hoped to engage the
stronger enemy at a greater advantage than in
the open sea. :
as does a cat.”