ABOARD THE US NAVY SUPPORT VESSEL BERKONE, LAST WEEK REPORTERS AND PHOTOGRAPHERS MET THE SCORPION FISH THAT BIT ASTRONAUT SCOTT CARPENTER AND ALMOST SCUTTLED HIS PLAN TO SPEND ANOTHER 15 DAYS IN SEALAB II.

THE 200 TON STEEL CYLINDER STARTED ITS DESCENT TO THE BOTTOM OF THE PACIFIC OCEAN ON AUGUST 26.SEALAB IS EQUIPPED TO ACCOMMODATE A CREW OF TEN AND THE FIRST TEAM, HEADED BY SCOTT CARPENTER, HAVE HAD A SERIES OF TESTS TO DO.AS WELL AS LIVING ON THE BOTTOM OF THE OCEAN THEY HAVE BEEN EXPLORING THE SEABED, CATCHING FISH AND TESTING NEW TYPES OF DIVING EQUIPMENT.IT WAS DURING THESE TESTS THAT SCOTT CARPENTER WAS BITTEN BY THE SCORPION FISH.A NAVAL DOCTOR, WHO WAS PART OF THE NEXT CREW FOR SEALAB, MADE A SPECIAL DIVE TO TREAT HIS PAINFULLY SWOLLEN ARM WITH PAIN KILLING DRUGS.

(A TRAINED PORPOISE NAMED "TUFFY" JOINED THE AQUANAUTS WORKING ON THE SEABED AROUND THE CAPSULE ON MONDAY.TUFFY WILL ACT AS A COMBINED LIFEGUARD AND MESSENGER BOY FOR THE TEN MEN CONDUCTING UNDERWATER EXPERIMENTS AND OBSERVATIONS.HE'S SO WELL TRAINED THAT HE CAN COME DOWN, TAP A LOST DIVER ON THE SHOULDER AND HAND HIM A LIFELINE).