The diamond drill. (Crystal Falls, Iron County, Mich.) 1887-1996, 1897-01-16
GARDENS OF The SEA.


There Is a wonderful country under
the sea, country of hills and plains, OF
lofty mountains and deep valleys, or
rocks and caves. It's widespreading
meadows are covered with strange an
imal flowers that move themselves
about In search of living prey, and its
forests consist of branching corals and
sea weeds taller than the loftiest trees.
Tempests may rage fercely overhead,
but deep, unbroken silence reigns al
,yavs in this underworld. nor can the
widest hurricane that drives vessels TO
wreckage move the most delicate ten
drill of the sea plants In the depths De-
low. Fragile creatures that fall TO
pieces almost at touch spend their
lives here in quiet and security. The
ocean depths. which for mankind are
regions of breathlessness and death,
are for billions of animals the region OF
life and health; the earth does not
maintain nearly SO many living crea-
lures as those that swarm in countless
myriads beneath the waves OF the
ocean. Here are great purple sea fans
and lovely sea lilies and sea ferns and
sea eucumbers and sea mice, and
sponges displaying bright colors that
are lost the moment they are taken
from the water; and here the rare ana
beautiful corals are silently buildcd
into reefs and islands.
If il ever be your good fortune to go
10 Florida and visit the Keys at the
southern end OF the state you may see
n coral plantation, alive and growing.
There Is famous lighthouse called
| Cary's Fortnight off the coast there,
from which such a sight can be had.
Cary's Fortnight is built in the open
sea. without n foot of land about ".
II is an iron framework OF columns,
strengthened by a network OF braces
and Orders, and the rooms in when
lives the keeper are about half way
up to the light, out of reach OF the
waves, 40 or so feet above the water
A balcony runs about these rooms
and, as the lighthouse is built over one
OF the most beautiful and extensive
fields OF coral known on this or any
other coast. the sight presented on look
ing from this balcony into the ocear
is more wonderful than can be wei
imagined by one who has not seen II
The coral field spreads out around the
lighthouse as far as the eye can reach
and so transparent Is the water tina
the ocean bottom can be seen as plainly
rs a garden lying beneath. The cora
field is largely made up of what arr
called leaf corals, with large fn
branches that grow one above another
L. snt.. To- trad N
panies, darting about, winding in an'
out the corals as IL in a game OF hide
and-go-seek. and hundreds of fish pla.
among their spreading branches.
, Most OF them are of very brillian
, colors, some Of bright hue, other
partly blue and partly black, other
again black blended with yellow, am
still others Of a bright canary-yelloN
beneath and rich purple above. NOV
, ond then some large fish, q shark, pei
haps, passes by, and all the small fr
, scatter, hiding among the corals. an
are seen no more till their enemy is on
of sight.
Besides the leaf coral. there are man
others even more beautiful 10 be seer
Some are In the shape Of huge vase
some are like great globes, other
branch out as do the horns OF the stal
and there are more delicate-branchin
kinds, called finger corals, and grea
numbers of sea fans. The sea fans forI
the shrubbery of the sea garden; the
stand on the ocean bottom ON sort {
root, and. unlike the leaf and brancl
ing corals. which are rigid and me
tionless, they rise lightly in the wat'
and wave in the gentle undercurren'
as IL stirred by the wind. They are {
many colors, and, mingled as they al
with n kind of vegetable coral Gale
coraline, and with the bright red, pu
pie or orange-colored sponges of Il
Florida coast, you may well realize, Q
looking at them, how surprising
beautiful are the flower gardens of II
eea.--Justin lie Roche, in Popular Sc
ence News