Life and Adventures of Frances Namon Sorcho The Only Woman Deep Sea Diver in the World

Category: Deep diving

Author: Captain Louis Sorcho Great Deep Sea Diving Co.

Title: Life and Adventures of Frances Namon Sorcho The Only Woman Deep Sea Diver in the World

Release Date: 2018-05-16

Type book: Text

Date added: 27 March 2019

Count views: 19

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Title: Life and Adventures of Frances Namon Sorcho

The Only Woman Deep Sea Diver in the World

Author: Captain Louis Sorcho Great Deep Sea Diving Co.

Release Date: May 16, 2018 [eBook #57172]

Language: English

Character set encoding: UTF-8

***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK LIFE AND ADVENTURES OF FRANCES NAMON SORCHO***

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Life and Adventures of Frances Namon Sorcho.

LIFE AND ADVENTURES OF FRANCES NAMON SORCHO.

THE BOTTOM OF THE SEA.

There’s wondrous wealth to man unknown

At the bottom of the sea,

Where stately ships on Neptune’s throne

Are rotting where the sun ne’er shone

In silent grandeur there alone,

At the bottom of the sea.

Mermaids dwell in caverns bright,

Jewels unknown flash their light,

And untold gold is hid from sight,

At the bottom of the sea.

Huge anchors lie buried in golden sand,

At the bottom of the sea.

Sunken junks from China’s strand

’Mid old ship’s splendid timbers stand,

Destruction dwells on every hand,

At the bottom of the sea.

Sightless fishes swim about

The bleaching bones, and in and out

The skulls of men, once brave, no doubt,

At the bottom of the sea.

The countless thousands sleeping there,

At the bottom of the sea.

The sailor, lover, maiden fair,

Who in the depths her jewels wear,

Now rest in peace without a care,

At the bottom of the sea.

Some are there well sewn in sail;

Ancient warriors clad in mail;

But one returns to tell the tale

of the bottom of the sea.

The diver, a mortal, like those that sleep

At the bottom of the sea.

An humble hero of the deep,

In sunken vessels’ hulls doth creep

To wrest the golden treasure heap,

From the bottom of the sea.

In armor, helmet, shoes of lead,

She braves those awful depths of dread,

The living ’mongst the million dead,

At the bottom of the sea.

Dedicated to Frances Namon Sorcho

By E. D. H.

PREFACE.

To the average individual unacquainted with the art of deep sea divingand the mysteries of the ocean away down beneath its surface, diversare sort of super-human creatures often read about but seldom seen. Howthey exist in the ocean’s depths, the queer costume they are compelledto wear, the strange sensations they experience, the wonderful sightsthey see, the desperate risks they take, and the manner in which theywork beneath the water, have, heretofore, all been a sealed volume tothe general public.

In presenting this little book to our patrons, it is our object toenlighten them on these subjects, and give them some idea, at least, ofthe life of a diver.

Mrs. Sorcho is the only woman deep sea diver in the world, and is theonly woman alive to-day who has ever donned a sub-marine armor anddescended into the ocean’s depths to work.

The example of intelligent daring is never lost on the world. Themastery of human beings over the material world is evident on everyside, but too often are they themselves slaves to lesser things. Withskill and courage, with caution and daring, with full knowledge ofthe danger, but with complete control over herself, this lady hasaccomplished what no other woman has ever dared to attempt. Fears,what are they? Coward thoughts. See Richard cowering in his tent.[Pg 3]See infants crying in the dark. See here a woman, who has braved thethousand deaths that await the diver; who has calmly, yet courageously,ventured in the ocean’s depths, with only the fishes and the thousandsawaiting the day when the sea shall give up its dead for companions;kept herself in perfect control and invaded the mystic depths as aconqueror, mistress alike of element and herself. Heroism is a medievalthought, daring a classic record. To-day society languishes, passionchills, the spirit of adventure dies, the glory of arms is stilledby peace congresses, and human beings dwindle into a part of simplemechanism. Four-fifths of the dangers of life are as trifles, if metwith courage, resolution and common sense.

Mrs. Sorcho is ready at any and all times to dive deeper and remainunder water longer than any other female, or forfeit $10,000.

Our armor is of the latest improved pattern, with telephone, electricsearch-light, and many other up-to-date attachments invented and usedexclusively by us. The scenes presented are exactly as they occur inthe diver’s life at the ocean’s bottom, and the exhibition cannot failto instruct and amuse both the old and young.

Trusting it may meet with your kind approval, we are,

Very sincerely yours,

Capt. Louis Sorcho,
Frances Namon Sorcho,

Deep Sea Divers.

[Pg 4]

HISTORY OF DEEP SEA DIVING.

Just how far back the art of sub-marine diving dates, is a matter ofconjecture, but until the invention of the present armor and helmet in1839, work and exploration under water was, at best, imperfect, andcould only be pursued in a very limited degree. The armor of to-dayconsists of a rubber and canvas suit, socks, trousers and shirt in one,a copper breastplate or collar, a copper helmet, iron-soled shoes, anda belt of leaden weights to sink the diver.

The helmet is made of tinned copper with three circular glasses, onein front and one on either side, with guards in front to protectthem. The front eye-piece is made to unscrew and enable the diverto receive or give instructions without removing the helmet. One ormore outlet valves are placed at the back or side of the helmet toallow the vitiated air to escape. These valves only open outwardsby working against a spiral spring, so that no water can enter. Theinlet valve is at the back of the helmet, and the air on entry isdirected by three channels running along the top of the helmet topoints above the eye-pieces, enabling the diver to always inhale freshair, whilst condensation on the glasses is avoided. The helmet issecured to the breastplate below by a segmental screw-bayonet joint,securing attachment by one-eighth of a turn. The junction betweenthe waterproof dress and the breastplate is made watertight by means[Pg 5]of studs, brass plates, and wing-nuts. A life or signal line enablesthe diver to communicate with those above. The air-pipe is made ofvulcanized india-rubber with galvanized iron wire imbedded.

The cost of a complete diving outfit ranges from $750 to $1,000. Theweight of the armor and attachments worn by the diver is 246 pounds,divided as follows:—

Helmet and breastplate, 51 pounds; belt of lead weights, 122 pounds;rubber dress or suit, 19 pounds; iron soled shoes, 27 pounds each.

The greatest depth reached by any diver was 204 feet, at which depththere was a pressure of 88½ pounds per square inch on his body. Thearea exposed of the average diver in armor is 720 inches, which wouldhave made the diver at that depth sustain a pressure of 66,960 poundsor over 33 tons.

The water pressure on the diver is as follows:—

20	feet	8½	lbs.
30	″	12¾	″
40	″	17¼	″
50	″	21¾	″
60	″	26¼	″
70	″	30½	″
80	″	34¾	″
90	″	39	″
100	″	43½	″
110	″	47¾	″
120	″	52¼	″
130	″	56½	″
140