CHAPTER XII 



SLUMBERERS OF THE SURGE 



When I began to be wonted to the long, wind- 

 ing kingdom of my shallow, underwater world, 

 its strange landscapes and stranger inhabitants 

 slowly penetrated the first fine frenzy of inarti- 

 culate emotion, to more specific appreciation. And 

 the very first evidence of this was humorous — for 

 I began to see close resemblances between the vil- 

 lagers of the deep, and dear friends of mine. And 

 this is not to be read with a roar of laughter, and 

 an all-inclusive pseudo-witticism of queer-looking 

 people and "poor fish." That is far from what 

 I mean ; it was in no way a question of special fea- 

 tures or personal appearance, but often in quite 

 indefinable qualities. The way a grouper would 

 come over a mound of coral, or a moorish idol peer 

 up at me, the nervous flick of a small wrasse per- 

 son, brought often to mind a gait, a glance or 

 a trick of the hand of someone. These casual 

 chuckles undermined the distraction of alienness, 

 and at once I felt more at home. This was em- 

 phasized when I dived again and again in one 

 spot, day after day, and saw, not only the same 



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