The new North-west. [volume] (Deer Lodge, Mont.) 1869-1897, 1878-10-04
color Of the Sea.

| How few there are who realize that the
ocean is aught else than raging mass of
weltering waves, lashed by storms, to be
regarded only with dread, and avoided
with aversion !! How many gain from it
but one Or two one-slded impressions To
one the sea is always blue somehow that
idea early fixed itself in his mind, and he
has never cared to observe further and re-
wise first partial impression. To another
it always looks green. Nothing more
fairly indicates the exceedingly limited
habits of observation of the average mind
in matters out of it's beat than the exces.
slvely meagre notions which many have of
the sea, even after repeating familiarity
with It, as In the case Of those who cannot
plead the excuse of sea-sickness for their
ignorance. How few there are who fully
appreciate the matchless suggcstiveness of
that Homeric passage" The innumera. .
Bile smiles of the many-voiced sea?" That
line only touches on the countless aspects
of ocean, and yet it is the finest definition
OF the sea in the whole range of literature.
Take, for example, the question of color
alluded to above: The sea is like vast
kaleidoscope representing in many combina-
tions all the colors of the rainbow it is not
impossible to imagine that if one were at
sufficient height above the sea, and en-
dowed with the condor's keenness of
vision, the round disk of the sea might at
once present all these hues to him as in a
kaleidoscope as things are, however, it is
not often one sees more than two or three
tlnts at once, except during sunset of
unusal magnifcence, when the reflections
are very varied. remember a sunset dur
ing calm prece ding storm, when the sky
was festooned with the pomp and splendor
OF every variety of cloud the hues and
cloud forms were nearly equally divided
from zenith to horison in four distinct
types oi form and color and the CORES
pondlng reflections ON the sullen swell of
the sea were awful in their dread and
varied magnifcence. But if such scenes
are rare, it is not at all uncommon 10 see
half the ocean deep purple toward ONE
half of the horizon, dark-viridian green in
the opposite direction, especially toward
evening or at early morning, and this re-
gardless of reflections, at a time when the
surface isso broken as to be filled with
local color. And after all it is the local
color more than the reflections which is
meant yphn3 x>P% e
although IN an artistic sense both have a
significance. At sea the color is not only
form of beauty conveying pleasure to the
mind, hut also has use, like everything
beautiful in nature. AS a rule, light green
indicates shoal water, the lighter the tint
the more shallow the depth. The local
color is ascertalnable by looking down
rather than on the surface. Dark-blue
water is a sign of great depth" off sound
lngs," as goes the technical phrase. But,
if one looks at blue water at distance, it is
then found TO be very dark green when
analysed and separated from the reflections.
which it is sometimes very difficult to do
especially in gray, lowering weather, when
the sea is found to give the impression of a
sort of leaden purple-gray. But after very
careful observation through long, narrow
tube, IN order that no conflicting rays of
light might disturb the vision, am con-
vi2ced that, even in the deepest water, the
basal color is some tint of green. In the
Bahamas, and among Coral islands in gen.
eral, where the bottom is <. white sand and
the water OF litIle .eptn it is found to be of
the most brilliant exquisite green, ranging
from emerald to the lightest tints of mala-
chite. 1t is impossible to overstate the
vlvidness of the colors in those waters, and
almost as impossible to try to reproduce
them on canvas for, to one who has never
seen them. the artist SO daring as to repro
duce those colors would be considered
stark mad. The red is scarcely less vivid
in the West India waters, being compile
mentary color of green, and, wherever a
rock near the surface ora cloud-shadow
obscures the green tint, red is Immediately
produced, and even the cloudless sky at
midday is also soft rose-color. By this
means the sponge-fishermen and wreckers
are able to navigate their sloops about
through the most intricate reefs, which are
indicated by purple patches as clearly as on
a chart. The Bermudas present similar
coiors, but with less yividness. ss.-Appleton's