CHAPTER V 



THE ROMANCE OF THE DEPTHS OF 

 THE SEA 



ALL who have taken any interest in the investi- 

 gation of the sea during the last twelve years will 

 know the " Michael Sars," and the work done 

 by her scientific staff in the North Sea. The ship 

 was built by the Norwegian Government in 1900 

 to undertake researches into the Norwegian fish- 

 eries in connection with the international scheme 

 of North Sea investigation, and to study the 

 conditions under which these fisheries exist. She 

 is essentially a first-class fishing trawler, specially 

 fitted for scientific work. Her length is about 

 120 feet and her gross tonnage 226. Her engines 

 are 300-horse power and can keep up a uniform 

 rate of ten knots ; but her coal storage is small, 

 a serious consideration when the Atlantic is to 

 be crossed. 



Her voyage but a few years ago, on the scientific 



exploration of the Atlantic, took her outward 



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