﻿70 
  Pirsson 
  and 
  Vaughan 
  — 
  Deep 
  Boring 
  in 
  Bermuda. 
  

  

  Art. 
  IX. 
  — 
  A 
  Deep 
  Boring 
  in 
  Bermuda 
  Island; 
  by 
  L. 
  V. 
  

   Pirsson 
  and 
  T. 
  Wayland 
  Vaughan. 
  

  

  In 
  April 
  1912 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  writers 
  (L. 
  V. 
  P.) 
  was 
  in 
  Bermuda 
  

   and 
  lodging 
  at 
  the 
  Princess 
  Hotel. 
  Through 
  the 
  courtesy 
  of 
  

   one 
  of 
  the 
  managers, 
  Mr. 
  F. 
  Howe, 
  he 
  learned 
  that 
  the 
  hotel 
  

   company 
  had 
  engaged 
  in 
  the 
  project 
  of 
  putting 
  down 
  a 
  deep 
  

   well 
  in 
  the 
  island 
  in 
  the 
  hope 
  of 
  obtaining 
  a 
  more 
  adequate 
  

   water 
  supply, 
  and 
  he 
  was 
  given 
  the 
  opportunity 
  of 
  seeing 
  this 
  

   well 
  and 
  of 
  inspecting 
  the 
  material 
  brought 
  up 
  from 
  it. 
  Later, 
  

   owing 
  to 
  the 
  kindness 
  of 
  Mr. 
  Howe, 
  he 
  was 
  furnished 
  with 
  a 
  

   carefully 
  taken 
  and 
  labelled 
  set 
  of 
  samples, 
  showing 
  the 
  char- 
  

   acter 
  of 
  the 
  rocks 
  at 
  about 
  every 
  40 
  feet 
  in 
  depth. 
  

  

  What 
  process 
  of 
  reasoning 
  or 
  matter 
  of 
  experience 
  led 
  the 
  

   projectors 
  of 
  this 
  enterprise 
  to 
  hope 
  to 
  obtain 
  a 
  large 
  supply 
  

   of 
  fresh 
  water 
  by 
  boring 
  into 
  a 
  conical 
  mass, 
  rising 
  from 
  the 
  

   floor 
  of 
  the 
  ocean's 
  abyss, 
  and 
  whose 
  summit 
  alone 
  projects 
  

   into 
  the 
  region 
  of 
  any 
  rainfall, 
  it 
  is 
  difficult 
  to 
  conjecture. 
  It 
  

   may 
  be 
  said 
  here, 
  that 
  the 
  problem 
  of 
  a 
  fresh-water 
  supply 
  in 
  

   a 
  thickly 
  settled 
  island 
  like 
  Bermuda, 
  especially 
  when 
  needed 
  

   in 
  quantities 
  in 
  a 
  large 
  modern 
  hotel, 
  is 
  a 
  difficult 
  one. 
  In 
  

   spite 
  of 
  its 
  insular 
  position 
  the 
  average 
  rainfall 
  is 
  not 
  high, 
  

   running 
  to 
  two 
  or 
  three 
  inches 
  a 
  month, 
  with, 
  generally, 
  twice 
  

   that 
  quantity 
  during 
  some 
  one 
  month 
  in 
  the 
  year. 
  Springs 
  

   and 
  streams 
  are 
  a 
  negligible 
  quantity, 
  while 
  ordinary 
  wells 
  are 
  

   poor, 
  unreliable, 
  and 
  shunned 
  for 
  sanitary 
  reasons. 
  The 
  ordi- 
  

   nary 
  supply 
  is 
  rain 
  water, 
  caught 
  from 
  the 
  roofs 
  of 
  houses 
  and 
  

   stored 
  in 
  cisterns. 
  Where 
  a 
  larger 
  amount 
  is 
  needed, 
  a 
  slop- 
  

   ing 
  hillside 
  is 
  cleared 
  of 
  its 
  vegetation 
  and 
  soil, 
  down 
  to 
  the 
  

   white 
  chalk-like 
  limestone, 
  which 
  having 
  been 
  cleaned 
  and 
  

   smoothed 
  forms 
  a 
  watershed 
  whose 
  drainage 
  is 
  collected 
  and 
  

   led 
  to 
  the 
  cistern. 
  It 
  is 
  quite 
  evident 
  that 
  no 
  mere 
  surface 
  

   rainfall 
  would 
  supply 
  any 
  underground 
  reservoirs 
  in 
  a 
  small 
  

   oceanic 
  island 
  like 
  Bermuda, 
  to 
  be 
  tapped 
  by 
  deep 
  boring, 
  and 
  

   the 
  projectors 
  of 
  the 
  well 
  realized 
  this, 
  but 
  hoped 
  that 
  water 
  

   of 
  " 
  volcanic 
  origin 
  " 
  might 
  in 
  some 
  way 
  be 
  met 
  with. 
  It 
  is, 
  

   perhaps, 
  needless 
  to 
  say 
  that 
  this 
  hope 
  was 
  not 
  fulfilled. 
  

  

  But 
  while 
  the 
  enterprise 
  from 
  the 
  commercial 
  side 
  was 
  a 
  

   failure, 
  its 
  interest 
  and 
  value 
  from 
  the 
  scientific 
  standpoint 
  is 
  

   very 
  great. 
  Fortunately, 
  it 
  was 
  perceived 
  by 
  Mr. 
  Howe 
  that 
  

   this 
  would 
  be 
  the 
  case, 
  and 
  it 
  was 
  owing 
  to 
  his 
  foresight 
  that 
  

   records 
  were 
  kept 
  and 
  samples 
  taken 
  at 
  each 
  stage 
  of 
  the 
  work. 
  

   One 
  set 
  of 
  these 
  has 
  come 
  into 
  possession 
  of 
  the 
  United 
  States 
  

   National 
  Museum, 
  and 
  it 
  is 
  due 
  to 
  the 
  courtesy 
  and 
  permis- 
  

   sion 
  of 
  Dr. 
  Kichard 
  Bathbun, 
  assistant 
  secretary 
  in 
  charge, 
  

  

  