New-York tribune., 1873-02-11

surface Ike the grasses Of brook the mousks crawl
along the bottom; oustaceans, hsh, starnshes Oh pI
liant coors and many other animals OF strange FORM
glide slowly dart like through the blue WAFER
merida and other living ribbons softly unrol their
transparent rings One might fancy ones sell snspe%ISu %
white foam on the waves raised by the keel OF the ship
the rdescent coors which sparkle IN the spray au
Even when tHe bed OF the sea is not distinctly visible
1t does not fail reveal itself by the peculiar tint ~ ~
mparts TO the water In general the co2r W vi e % ,o0
lighter the coasts, and even at depn OF aposV S
TO $50 fathoms, paler shade Of the SsIer M the
makes known 20 the practiceu eye ol nS o., frnm he
relative proximity OF the bottom Not far nola had
suddenly assumed tint OF dark oYegreens, s,d n that
he caused sounding to be taken, III was ni ooior
| the mud at the bottom was precisely u tban in one
Numerous naygators nave anii III iio mass ~ gateris
part OF the Lagullas bank, where tne mdsS from
above 100 fahoms deep the TSp p Iosngo the water
is always brown. similar TO that OF t I tbeo This
coor1c owing 10 the sun light which deeends
the LIQUID depths TO the bed OF Ihe SEA, % C;di thinks
again TO the surface does u result n a tSe waters
from particles mud that are hoatng ~ % t S Fnaw1ne
Another question, difficult 70 soNo is o Not 10 men,
MI ~ te n tral color the sea-WaleT NJ " s
on local ooorng resulting, Ike narts
numberless minute living otgalsi otg, hotever NAV be
NJ the ocean almost always present. wnaueNot az
the state 81 & Inc "ecypnta shades Thus cite one Of
tbe most striking contrasts the water OF we % n5 of
GascOnv is OF a sOmber green Whe iu ~ to . ,n,rnG
Lyons tno ee1er than mat Of the sky The wonderful
blue color which rises from the deptns oi pttoG bv
In the erotto OF Capri so frequently Nslteu tISS ny
iiayeIers is wellknown f5smRe fSs Rso pcculiaT iT
degree Of intensity TO which the @ o1o tIr I'm the
10 he waters Of the Mediterranean can atIah % 60 m he
troucal atudes Of the Atlantic ana the oouth oca %
azre OF the ocean is no less beautiu Indn luat vi ho
rbonian sea while IN the direction OF the poles tle
Water gradually assumes Creenish tint. NatuIaISts
have concluded from ths fact that lthe OI 9
rays OF light which are much more WIN Hluei
ptitudes play principal part IN tne Dlue c9lorhe ot
the Maury thinks that the sadness Is aso 80 o % U
which contributes tl9 uosS 10 t' of
tint TO the water; ana observes that the Guu stream Oh
the American coasts superior IN sSy ~ ann nucb i deeper
blue. In the way the shallow water et INTO Tue
salt marshes Of coasts gains IN intensity OI cOor IN pro
portion as the salt Is concentrated ther sun II " very
possible that the cOorng Of the sen due III great part
IKE the marvellous tlnts OF the SWISS lakes 10 nuner
able corpuscues heidin suspension upon "nch 'e sn'
strikes.
Although not directly connected with the phe-
nomena of the ocean, the passage on the influence
of color in the preservation OF animal life, which
occurs in another part of the volume, Is too striking
not 10 be quoted
Its strange thing that even The color OF certain spe
cies seems 10 correspond in kind OF secret harmony
@ .t ,n ,citb dclight into an oTen flower gilt
tiers like the flower ITSELF many sh which 1--we IN rivers
with a sandy bed 10 be only thn fakes OF spanged
sand: moreover, certain brown DlGHtis oi southern
Africa YES only on dar-Colored ground: another, en-
trely white. is only the dazzling chalk rocks;
fbe 1tarmgan of Scotland is white the snow in Win
Ter and i'm the Summer dressed in piumage whose
shades of pearly gray blend, with the dencate unts OF
the cb ms and heather The green leaves OF our lOfess
have ion Inhabitants the treerOgs and other tte crea-
lures which match the yerdure; while butterfly ltSei
resembling dead leaf dances IN the air among the dead
leaves scattered by the wind; orthOpterJus insect
even seems as If disguised under the form OF
broken beechtwg. and We might tnnk ulJ !. was @ 1le
OF these innumerable fragments that the tempest has
| broken ron the On the River Amazon me ar IS
filed az certain seasons win sbecles Ol "'o ,
ny. flying Inyriads, Ike snow-haAes ID storm gut
among these butterflies are some ndVldaals oi speGle5
ordinarily distinct III Color anu "hlcu natc ulSEtoI
themselves white IN order 70 be lost IN tne lInuense
crowd How can we aleinI 10 P,du Ps eo % ,,eans ~
bic phenomenon when constitutes 'io sDo az % W
Oefeuse of the hunmug-ur, OF the Iceoe insect Ol u
helpless parasite, excepting by the hypOthess OF
/ natural selection" which Darwin has recently ex-
pounded clearly. IN the incessdnt struggle Ior *
teuCe dating from the very origin OF The species al e
individuals "hch cduuOJ 9cIeHu ~ 80 ol i
cunning. scent, venom, inevitably perish; tnoae alone
have the chGuce of escaping which, by Their FORM ana
color are not di ngushabe from surrounding objects
tits these Who BY the gradual disappearance OF the in
Giyidaals visible to animals o. pepe.uae tne race
aud ia The succession OF generations 1t is st the y4l
etics most resembling the ground or pulhts on %hoh
they feed which save the species from destruction. Thus
l0n seheioH 70 n 10 s9e In fhe ond peTma
/ ncnr character
| In addition to the strictly physical descriptions,
/ which compose the main body of this volume, the
author engages in series of discussions relating TO
the progress of civilization, and the conditions Of
social improvement which, though often of specu-
lative character, abound with interesting sugges-
tions and to many readers will prove the most
! tempting portions Of the work Thus we have
disouistion on the influence Of maritime residence.
which if the views which it presents are not entirely
original can claim the merit of impressive state
meut and pertinent illustration.
The ebh and Cow Of the waves exercise great power
of attraction on nearly all men. and must certainly be
considered adding large portion to the population Of
sea-shores. savages especially who always obey ther
first instinct, yield readily 10 the ascnaJou Whlch water
exercises upon them. In the islands OF The southern
Ocean, which are sti peoped by barbarous tribes the
sea-shore the only inhabited part, and the villages
form round the mountains OF the interora ring as rogu
lar as that Of the banks OF coral IL must DC coesSa @
the Islanders seek their food III the sea ana on as
shores and the coast affords them the greatest facilities
/ FOR trade and communication. The rumberless fish and
mOlusks which frequent the sea IN the Vcny or most
of the coasts form an abundant source OF iood whlch
lcgons Of fishermen may draw upon without fear OF eX'
haustlng H. lho sAoIe anu IAc M'voS ~iiIci "..an ~
form he readiest OF communication Tor the unaO
tants and allow them 10 20 and exchange thef sh iOf
other commodities we nave mere lne DeslhDs oi COM
/ mprce and the origin Of the modern movement which
spreads all directions across both land and sea- laying
Iod of the riches scattered far and wdc and circulating
them from to another Ike 40 1t were, the feDlood
! Thcse commercial facilities. which enjoyed by the
still barbarOus people OF many island coast, must
over civilized nations always anxious DO in relation
with another by the interchange OF news aud CEN.
modtes. Thus the small islands Of the West Indies and
the scattered isles in the Atlantic, as well as Mauri-
husband Reunion in the Indian ocean, are inhabited
almost exclusively their outer edge IN many OF these
lands the interior remained a long time almost un-
known although the cOlonstS coming lo the most part
from colder countries would have found u 20 their ad
vantage seek in the lofty valleys and on the mountain
slopes climate similar to that OF tneir native land In
the same way, the continent, considerable pOpula
uoS ,rI a. = line drawn from 3ny central uateau TO the
sea crOsses regions increasing 10 population gets
pe@ple are in the habit Of settling on the shores of lakes
which are, in fact miniature oceans, or along the rivers
and other watercourses. which the Chinese rightly
call the children Houses gardens cult
waited lands border continuously both banks every large
Tiver in temperate Europe and Villages and towns are
founded AZ every confluence where HOntafy JOINS the
principal watercOurse thus, often said, the Seine,
The Thames, the Rhine, the RhOne. and the Loire are
nothing but moving streets uniting with another
the fragments Of the immense town which borders their
hanks the 20 the mouth. The Lakes OF Con
stance. Zurich, and Geneva also surrounded by
dwellings and gardens though with belt. Toward
the eastern extremity of Lake Leman from Veyey to
Vleneuve the chateaux, hotels, and cOuntryhouses
connect one village with another, so as TO form one
splendid city and certainly the beauty OF the scenery
much more than the advantages Of navigation, is the
point has made this lovely shore one OF the most
re1uented and pOpuOus parts of Europe. The Deauti
ul view OF Verdant headiands, of the white Shores
and the blue Mediterranean. is the why the
|