APPENDIX C 



Beebe, Mr. Mark Barr and myself, the actual construction 

 being in the hands of Mr. J. Schrope, foreman machinist 

 of the American Museum of Natural History. 



In brief, it consisted of a brass, water-tight case, into 

 which a camera was inserted. The camera chosen was 

 a motor driven De Vry, using standard 35 mm. film and 

 equipped with its regular f. 3.5, two-inch focal length lens, 

 and a two-inch f. 1.9 lens. It was selected after careful 

 consideration of the smaller, motor driven cameras mainly 

 because of its shape, — a rectangular box, about which 

 it would be simple to fit a brass case. The choice was 

 justified by the mechanical operation of the camera, as 

 it performed perfectly and did everything that was required 

 of it. 



The outer, water-tight, brass case that allowed the camera 

 to be taken underwater, can be more easily understood by 

 reference to the illustrations. It consists of a rectangular 

 box with outside dimensions as follows: length 1234 inches, 

 height I'J/g inches, width 53^ inches. It is made of 3^ inch 

 thick brass, recessed on the sides and top wherever it could 

 be done without weakening the structure, so as to lessen the 

 weight as much as possible. The box and camera loaded 

 with film and ready to go under the surface weighs thirty- 

 nine pounds. 



The front end of the case contains a plate glass port 

 2x5 inches in diameter and 3<| inch thick, through which the 

 photographs are taken. The port is centered, of course, with 

 the axes of the lenses and the center of the film. Space 

 was left in the box between the lenses and the port for filters, 

 but they were not used during the expedition. 



The rear end of the box is open so that the camera can be 

 inserted. It is closed by a brass lid held tightly in place 

 by ten butterfly-nuts, — a large rubber gasket being inserted 

 between the lid and the box, making the joint so tight that 

 not a single drop of water entered the camera during the 

 months that it was used in Haiti. 



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