Year: 1875

oapt. Boysonas Afaventures 90 Diver
The Wreck On Coral Reef =


| From eGentlelnane Magazine ssFe4


Sosn. afterward worked down into ths
auif Of Mexico The first coral raised
was il Cosoche. Knocking round about
thete,I heard of the loss Of the schoonel
Foam. The first mate and three men goi
SAVED, but the captain, his daughter, .nd
three MEN got lost. / slung round to see
If sha could be raised. After we'd spent
thebest part Of the week We sailed ovel
her, and dropped anchor. It was a lovely
Sunday morning when we struck her. She
layin sixty feet Of water on q bottom al
white "a the moon. Looking down could
see her leaning over ON one side upon &hs
coral reef. When got down to her saw
she'd torn great gap in the reef when she
ran asainse u. The znaiasnasE was gone
! and hung By the fore clambered up +;
saw'whole shoals Of fish playing in and out
of the hatches. First went to look for
the bodies, for never like to work while
there's any of them about. Fndingi the
fo'castle empty, went to the two little
state cabins. It was rather dark, and
had to feel in the lower hunks. There was
nothing in the first, and in the other
the door was locked. I pried 1t open and
shot back the lock with my adze. It few
open, and out something fell right against
mo. / felt at once it was the woman's
body. / was not exactly frightened, but 1t
shook me rather. / slung it from me and
went out into the light bit until got
hold of myself. Then turned back and
| brought her mt i,sr thing! She'd been
very pretty, and 90 i caa led her i'm my arms;
with her white face nestled against my
shoulder, she seemed as II she was only
sleeping. / made her fast to tho line as
carefully as could to send her up, and the
fish played about her as if they were sorry
she was going. At last gave the signal,
and she went slowly up, her hair floating
round her head like pillow Of golden sea
weed. That was the only oody I found
there, and / managed after to raise pretty
considerable Of the cargo.


One of my expeditions was among the
fsilver banks Of the Antilles, the loveliest
place I ever saw, where the white coral
grows into curious tree-like shapes. AS I
stepped along the bottom it seemed as il I
were in frosted forest. Here and there
trailed long fronds of green and crimson
seawced. Silver-bellied fish flashed about
among the deep-brown and purple sea fern,
which rose high as my head. Far as I
could see all round in the transparent wa
ter were different colored leaves. and on the
floor piles OF shells so bright in color that
it seemed as il had stumbled on place
where they kept . stock of broken rain
bows. could not work bit, and had q
quarter determination to sit down while
and wait for mermaid. guess il those
sea girls live anywhere, they select that
spot. After walking the inside ont Of half
an hour I thought had better go to work
and blast for treasure. A little bit on from
where sat were the remains of treasure
ship. It was Britisher, think, and
corals had formed all about her, or rather
about what was left of her. The coral ON
the bottom and round her showed black
spots. That meant q deposit of either iron
or silver. I made fairly good hauls every
time went down, and sold one piece I
found to Barnum of New York.


After left there had curious adven-
ture with shark. ] was down on nasty
rocky bottom. A man never feels COM
Portable on them he can't tell what big
creature may be hiding under the huge
quarterback sea leaves which grow there.
The first part of the time was visited by
a porcupine fish which kept sticking his
qnills up and bobbling in front Of my he'll
met. Soon after saw big shadow fall
across me, and looking up there was an
internal shark playing abou. my tubing.
It makes you feel chilly in the back when
they're about. He came down to me slick
as looked up. made at him and he
slieared Off For an hour he worked at it,
till could stand It no longer II you can
keep your head level, it's all right, and
you're pretty safe if they're not on you
sharp. This ugly brute was twenty feet long,
I+should think, for when lay down all my
length ON the bottom he stretched con-
siderable way ahead Of me, and could soc
him beyond my feet. Then waited. They
must turn oyer to bite, and my lying down
bothered him. He swan over three or
four times, and then skulked of to q big
thicket Of seaweeds TO consider. know
he'd come back when he'd settled his mind.
1t seemed long time waiting for him. At
last he came viciously over me, but, like
the time before, too far from my arms.
The next time had my chance and ripped
him with my knifs as neatly as could. a
shark always remembers he's got business
somewhere else when he's cut, SO off this
fellow goes. It j. curious thing, too, that
all the sharks aboat viii fellow in the trail
he leaves. ] got on my hands and knees,