Evening star., 1924-06-15

net or bag of coir twenty inches deep
meshes, a bucket, pair of plain
glass spectacles for underwater use.
a jar of drinking water and food for
later in the day.
THE sun was already high in the
unclouded sky when we lifted
the mat sail and glided through the
pale-blue pond, the shores of which
were a melting contrast of alabaster
and viridescence. All about US were
our friends in their own craft. We
did not anchor the canoe because of
the profundity of the water and be-
cause it is not the custom to do So
l sat with paddle in my hand for
a few minutes, but laid it down when
Nohea pick led up the looking glass.
He put the unlidded box into the
water and his head into it and gazed
intently for few moments, moving
the frame about to sweep the bottom
of the lagoon with his wise eyes.
The water was as smooth as a mir
ror. l saw the bed of the inland sea
as plainly as one does the floor of
an aquarium a few feet deep. No
streams poured debris into 1t, nor did
any alluvium cloud it's crystal purity.
Coral and gravel alone were the base
of it's floor and sides. and the result
was surprising transparency of the
water not believable by comparison
with any other lake.
How far is that toa aau?" / ask ed
and pointed to a bank of coral.
Nohea sized up the object, took his
head from the titea mata, and re-
piled, Sixty feet"
At that distance I could, unaided,
see plainly a piece of coral as big as
my hand. The view was as varie-
gated as the richest landscape-a
| wilderness of vegetation, of magnifi-
cent marine verdure, sloping hills
and high towers with irregular win
dows, in which the sunshine streamed
in a rainbow of gorgeous colors, and
the shells and bodies of scores of
zoophytes dwelling upon the struc-
lures cleaned and glistened like
jewels in the flood of light. About
these were patches of snowwhite
sand, binding in refracted brilliancy,
and beside them green bushes or trees
of herbage-covered coral, all beauti-
full as dream garden of the Nereids
and as imaginary.
The canoe had drifted. and Nohea
slipped over its side and again spied
with the glass. l, too, looked through
mine, and saw where he indicated
ridge or bank Of coral. upon which
were several oyster shells. Nohea
imm mediately climbed into the canoe
and. resting upon the side. prayed a
few moments, bowinig his head and
nodding as if In the temple.
Then he began to breathe heavily.
For several minutes he made a great
noise, drawing in the air and expel-
ling it forcibly, SO that he seemed to
be wasting energy. l was almost
convinced that he exaggerated the
value of his emotions and explosive
sounds, but his impassive face and
remembrance of his races freedom
from our exhibition conceit, drove the
foolish thought away. His chest,
very capacious normally, was burst
ing with stored air, a storage beyond
that of our best trained athletes. And
without a word he went over the
side and allowed his body to descend
through the water. He made no
splash at all, but sank as quietly as
a stone.
T FASTENED my head in the titea
mata and watched his every move
ment He had about his waist a
pareu of calico, blue with large white
f1owers-the design Of William Nor
ris-and a sharp sailors sheathknife