The star of the north. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1849-1866, 1861-10-30
Bottom of the Ocean.


Mr. Greere, the famous diver tells siugu-
lar stories of his adventures, when making
search in the deep waters of the ocean
He gives some sketches of what he saw on
The Silver Banks near Hayti:
''The banks of coral on which my divines
were made, are about forty miles in length,
and from ten to twenty in breadth
On this bank Of coral is presented 10 the
diver one of The most beautiful and sublime
scenes the eye ever beheid. The water
varies from ten to one hundred feet in
depth, and is SO clear that the diver can see
from two TO three hnnd re feet, when sub
merged with litiis obstruction to the sight
The bottom OF The ocean, in many places
on these banks, is as smooth as a Marble
floor, in others il is studded with coral col
umns. from len TO one hundred ieet in height
and from one 10 eighty feet diameter. The
Top of those more lofty supper: a myriad OF
pyramidai pendants, each forming a myriad
more, giving the really TO the imaginary
abode of some water nymph: In other Pla-
ces the pendants form arch after arch, aud
as the diver stands on the bottom OF the
ocean, and gazes through these into the
deep winding avenue, he feels that they fill
him with as sacred an awe as If he were in
some old cathedral, which had long been
buried beneath "od oceans wave" Here
and there, the coral extend even 10 the sur
face o! the wafer, as If those loitier columns
were towers belonging 10 the stately tenn
plies now in ruins There were countless
varieties OF .diminut:ve trees, shrubs and
plants, in every crevice Of the corals where
the wat er had deposited the least earth.-
They were all of faint hue, owing to the
pale light they received, although OF every
shade, and entirely different from plants
am familiar with, that vegetale upon dry
land. One in particular attracted my alien
ton il resembed a sea fan of immense
size, variegated colors, and OF the most bril-
iiant hue.
The fish which Inhabited those silver
banks, found as 6ifferent in kind, as the
scenery was varied. They were Of all
forms, colors and sizes-froIn the symmet-
rcal goby, 10 the globe like sunfsh from
those of the dullest hue, TO the changeable
dolphin from ihs spots OF the leopard 10
the hues of the sunbeam from the hahn =
less minnoW to The voracIous shark. Some
had heads like squirrels, others like cats and
dogs, one OF small size ,esembled a boll
terrier. Some darteG through The water
like meieors, while Others could scarcely
be seen 10 move.
To enumerae all the various kinds of fish
] beheld while diving on these banks
do, require more space than my limits will
allow for am convinced that most OF the
kinds of fish which inhabit the tropical seas
can be found there. The sun-fsh saw-fsh,
star-fsh, white shark, ground shark, blue
or shoyel-nose shark, were often seem
There were also fish which resembled
! plants, and remained as fixed in their posi-
/ ton as a shrub. The only power they
possessed was 10 open and shut when in
danger. Some of them resembled the rose
il full bloom, and were of all hues. There
were ribbon fish, from four 10 five inches,
to three feet in length. Their eyes were
very large, protrude like those of the frog
Anolhar fish was spotted like the leopard,
from three TO ten feet in length They
build their houses like the beaver, in which
they spawn, and The male or female watch
es The ova I'LL il halches saw many spe-
cimen. of The green turtle, some five ieel
long, which | should think would weigh
from four 10 Ave hundred pounds.