THE LAURENTIC'S GOLD.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LX, Issue 18496, 5 September 1923, Page 7

THE LAURENTIC'S GOLD.

SUCCESSFUL SALVAGE.

MILLIONS ON SEA BOTTOM.

GREATER PART RECOVERED.

It was recently announced that , the British Admiralty has almost completed the salvage of the bullion from the steamer Lauveritic, which was torpedoed off Lough Swilly, Ireland," in January, 1917. Of the 3000 gold bars, valued at £6,000,000, which were originally ■ consigned to America, all but 30 havo been recoverod. In addition, £1,000,000 worth of silver, mostly in florins, has been recovered. The vessel lies in 90ft. of water. The salvage ship _ Racer began operations in 1918, recovering 600 bars of gold. Work for the next two .years consisted mainly of clearing the wreck, in order to reach the remainder of the bullion. ■ Three hundred bars were recovered in 1921, 899 in 1922, and 1050 in 1923. The bars weigh 141b. and 281b., and were shipped in wooden boxes, each containing four bars. .

Whole boxes were originally salvaged but later on the wood rotted, and the bars have been recovered singly , since 1920. . A scientist has facilitated. operations since 1921 by inventing a spear with which the diver prods the sand mud, • covering the wreck. When the spoar touches metal it operates a galvanometer like a clock on the deck of the Racer. The hand of the galvanometer veers to the left when the spear touches, iron or other 'base metal, and veers to the right when the spear touches gold. The Racer leaves Port Salon every morning if weather permits of diving, and steams seven miles to the wreck's buoyed position. officer descends and surveys the position of the wreck, which is, changing almost daily owing to the ■ explosion of blasting charges. The officer knows whether-an order is being carried out by the amount of piceline which is being prid out. The diver takes from 20 to 30 minutes to ascend by easy stages, beginning at 10ft,, with intermediate rests.. A sudden ascent, by removing the pressure of water from the bodv too quickly, endangers his life, and creates: bubbles of air in the blood.'* a condition which is akin to blood-poison-ing. On one occasion a diver's heavy leaden shqo became detached, and ho was shot straight to the surface. On another occasion a diver descended to fasten his mato's loose shoe, and, whilst stooping, the weights round his neck, back and chest dropped off, with the result that he was shot to the surface feat foremost. When seen, he was bobbing about in the water 90ft. astern. He was almost dead when hauled aboard. He was immediately placed into a big boiler, and air was pumped into him for the purpose of reducing the blood bubbles. Much silver specie has been found Iving loose amid the mud and sand, which the divers, using their hands, scoop into buckets, which are hauled up and emptied on deck, where the sailors . carefully abstract the coins.' . - ;

The divers. and everybody else aboard the Racer participate in the prize-money. The total originally was fixed' at onesixteenth of the bullion'salvaged, but it has been reduced to one-thirty-second, owing to the largo amount recovered. .