Science: Deep-Sea Gold

When the Laurentic was sunk off Lough Swilly by a German submarine during the War, a large treasure in bullion went down with it. The British marked the site and fought on. But in 1918 the attempt to salvage the undersea gold was begun, and to date about $35,000,000 has been recovered by divers.

Not until 1920 was much accomplished owing to the greater need for apparatus and divers at Scapa Flow. By that time the Laurentic had broken up and proved a mass of tangled ironwork. During 1920 only eight bars of bullion were recovered.

At this stage of the game, entered Professor F. F. Brooks with an instrument capable of locating gold, which cost only £15. By sticking a spear into the mud at the bottom of the sea, the presence of gold was indicated on a galvanometer. The Professor's contrivance changed failure into success. In 1921, 100 bars of bullion were recovered; in 1922, 900 bars; in 1923, 11,050 bars. Operations this season were to make a clean job of it, and salvage was small. All the precious metal that went down with the Laurentic, except for a small amount of specie, has now been recovered.