SALVING GOLD.

Taranaki Daily News, 29 November 1924, Page 9

SALVING GOLD.

LAURENTIC’S VAST TREASURE. ScvWISSIFUL DIVING OPERATIONS. Gold ingots, numbering 3211 and worth over £5,000,000, together with minted pilver to the value df another T I,ooo,tit —such was the treasure loaded on board tl»e White Star liner Laurentic, which, during heavy weather, was sunk off the Irish coast on January. 26, 1917, through striking a mine or being torpedoed by an enemy submarine. On her last fateful passage the Laurentic >vas bound for Halifax, Neva Scotia, the bullion in her strongroom being destined lor the payment of accounts for munitions of war supplied from the United states. When the ship was off Fanad Head, on the coast of Ireland, a terrific explosion shook the vessel, and tore a vast wound in her bow. All efforts to put the ship about and beach her proved futile, and she sank quickly in about 21 fathoms of water. Of hQr. large company of men, many lost their lives. Particulars of the salvage operations for the recovery of the gold, which although protracted, were eminently successful; were given by one of the men who, for three years, was associated with with the venture, and who is now in Auckland. The first vessel. sent to the wreck: was the Volunteer, in 1917, but beyond making investigations as to depth and other matters, little was done. The submarine monace was then at its height, and often the Volunteer had to slip her moorings and run for safety. But, in spite of these menaces, the season's

Commander G. C. C. Damant, proved quite successful, 568 gold ingots'being salved. SHIP GONE TO PIECES. Access to the bullion room amidships had to be made by blasting, and finally the naval’Olivers, cut their way into the heart of the wreck. The menace of the 1. -boats prevented any salvage at* tempts in 1918, but in the following year diyijig was conducted with the utmost energy, the salvage ship Racer taking the place of th e Volunteer. Th;e first diver down in 1919 had rather a shock. All that mot his gaze was a jumble of steel ship’s plates, and one or two rolling on the sea bed. The strong tides had played havoc with the wreck, and, as a result months had to be spent in clearing away the junk. Torn hands and broken finger nails were the lot of the underwater workers, but doggedly and stubbornly, they stuck to their work, finally winning a new way to where the ingots lay. When the Racer returned to Portsmouth at the close of the fine weather season of la 19, she had 313 bars of gold under hatches, Jhe Racer was back on the scene 1920; but' the season proved most unsuccecssful. Gelignite and powerful lifting tackle were again brought into use, and the bHistructions were slowly removed. Six months of strenuous labour, howetfer,: yielded only I'7 bars of gold. Disappointed, but not deterred, the salvors in the Racer returned to hhigland for the winter. March 0f1920 again saw the salvors off the hills of Donegal, ready again to essay the task of winning gold from the sea bed. This season's work, however, was only partially successful, 43 bars being recovered. •’OkE IN THE BUCKET.” The most profitable period was from March, to the end of October. 1924, which latter month saw the conclusion of the treasure quetet. Tn Mai ch,. 1922, the Racer again came on the scene. The fust diver down, Petty Officer E. Crouch, had hardlv been two minutes on the wreckage when he called out through the telephone. “One in the bucket.” Ingot after ingot was found, and soon there were b in the bucket. Before half an hour had passed treasure to the value o; £27.090 had ‘been hauled to the surface. This was more than double the amount salved during the whole of the 192.) season. The work in 1922 was also successful. On some days gold to the value of thousands of pounds was stream about the Racer’s deck, just as though it were pig-iron. Each day the gold was boxed up and removed to the destroyer. In 1922 two destroyers were engaged in the p- »- tection of the salved bullion, and th< se vessels between them carried to put, for despatch to the Bank otf England’ •B&6_ gold ingots, valued at about £1,500,0(M\ the result of six months diving. Even greater success marked the diving in 1923, when 1350 ingots were brought up from the wreck, leaving only 195 to be located in And of these, all, except five were recovered by the divers before the end of last month. DI v 'ER’S UNDER- WATER PRESSURE. A day in the life of a diver Avorking on the wreck of the Laurentic held unbounded interest and always there was tne gamble as to how much would be salved. All the operations were carried but. on a well-arranged system. The diver descended to the wreck by means

of the steel wire “shot” rope, and the b'lK-ket’. a massive iron basket-like receptacle, was then lowered to him. The diver loaded the recovered into the bucket and then signalled for them to be hauled Un. A large amount of stone, sand and silt lyid to be cleared away each day, and often the divers lingers were so" sore, with cuts and splintered nails, that they could hardly hold a knife and fork* at the mess table. The diver’s descent took alxnit one minute, but over half an hour was needed to bring him up. He was brought up by stags, thus grAdualiy reducing the 801 b. prvssur? at tlie level of the wreck to the normal pressure of the open air. THE RjuCOMPRESSION CHAMBER. . Occasionally it happened that by acciver came to the surface too rapidly. W’hen that occurred he was. iiiHuediAtely 'brought Onboard undressed from his diving suit, and into a cyliu4rieal.fank, known as a reconipressio’f. chanib'er. In this tank the diver wa} given the same pressure of air as whe s. he was on the wreck. Food, tea and a book could be handed to the man,, through an air-tight dock-like cavity, and instructions would be written on a slate and read by the man through a, glass port.