286 I N A G U A 



tangible on which to gaze rendered the undertaking more 

 frightening. Man is always more afraid of the invisible than 

 the real. So I excused myself on the grounds that I had no 

 flashlight, and besides I had no desire to provoke an unwar- 

 ranted combat with an angry moray or some other large 

 carnivore that might be lurking in the dark. The appearance 

 of the valley itself was sufficient to melt my already partially 

 dissipated bravery. There is no place in all the world so effi- 

 cacious as the depths of tropical undersea for deflating the 

 human ego. One feels so helpless and out of element. 



The valley was interesting in that it marked the boundary 

 line of the distribution of a great many creatures. The closer 

 one approached the surface the more abundant and varied was 

 the fife. Down below variety was compensated by size. It 

 seemed that the older fishes preferred a more quiet and sub- 

 dued life away from the flash and turmoil of the resplendent 

 reef. The upper edge of the ravine also marked the fringe of 

 the true vegetation. The last carpet of moss and algae termi- 

 nated at the brim. These plants required fight for their well- 

 being; and although the valley was lighted, this iUumination 

 was much too wan and weak. This was the farthest down of 

 vegetable fife; everything beyond was animal. From the valley 

 floor one left behind all vestige of the world of the upper air. 



I had never realized before how very important light was 

 nor how dispiriting the color blue could be. On the reef itself 

 the blue was afive, for it was fused with a shining abundance 

 of sunlight; down there it was heavy and depressing. I am 

 confident that a person kept continually in deep blue light 

 would shortly go mad with melancholia; to have the blues 

 is a literal description. 



The very center of the valley was occupied by a towering 

 crag that was topped with a smaU coral tree. It reminded me 

 of the absurd stone castles that people place in goldfish bowls, 



