NARRATIVE OF THE CRUISE 153 



Our experience on November 8 was a striking example of this. 

 We were hove-to about 100 miles from the coast of Ecuador. 

 The chart indicated a depth of 3,300 meters. We had no inten- 

 tion of obtaining the usual bottom-sample, but wished to get 

 temperatures and water-samples down to 3,000 meters. When 

 only half of this length of wire had been paid out, the wire 

 slacked and we suspected that we had struck bottom. When the 

 bottles were brought up we found the wire tangled near the lowest 

 one, confirming our suspicions. To establish definitely this 

 unexpected discovery, the piano-wire was sent down and globi- 

 gerina ooze collected at 1,454 meters! We named this new ridge, 

 discovered quite by accident, "Carnegie Ridge." It rises about 

 6,000 feet above the general level of the bottom in this neighbor- 

 hood. 



It was obvious that we must devise some method for securing 

 sonic depths. Soundings with the wire would take too much 

 valuable time. The hydrophone-outfit was found still in good 

 shape, and we needed only a suitable "noise-maker." The first 

 suggestion was to manufacture some bombs, out of the gunpowder 

 we carried to fire the cannon of the breeches-buoy equipment. 

 But there was only a small stock of this powder. Paul suggested 

 a chemical bomb, but there were insufficient materials for this. 

 Then Captain Ault thought it might be possible to use the shot- 

 gun shells furnished by Dr. Wetmore of the Smithsonian Insti- 

 tution. These had been carried for hunting land birds from the 

 inaccessible ports we should visit. 



The problem of making a submarine shot-gun was turned over 

 to Leyer, the Engineer. Within a few days he constructed a 

 suitable device for firing the shells under water. A twenty -foot 

 length of brass pipe was fitted with a shell-holder, which screwed 

 into one end. This end was submerged and a firing-pin dropped 

 down the tube. Soule measured with a stop-watch the time- 

 interval between explosion and arrival of the echo from the 

 bottom. We compared depths so determined with soundings 

 by wire and pressure-thermometers, and found that the accuracy 

 was sufficient to justify soundings two or three times a day until 

 we reached Callao. 



