164 AT THE END OF THE SPECTRUM 



by side, kept with us for 20 feet of depth, and siphono- 

 phores (Fig. 103) and a large ctenophore swept by close 

 to my face. 



Our electric light now cast a strong beam showing as 

 turquoise blue through the darkness. At 1500 feet it re- 

 vealed two large eels, which at once swam up out of the 

 light. These showed no lights whatever on their bodies and 

 were considerably more slender than those seen higher up. 

 They were undoubtedly Serrivomer, or bronze sea eels. 



About this time word came down the wire that we 

 were being broadcasted, but a moment later this was for- 

 gotten and not again remembered until we were reminded 

 of its ending half an hour later. Sealed up as we were, the 

 human mind utterly refused to conceive of anyone, ex- 

 cept my assistant whose voice I constantly heard, being 

 able to hear what I was saying. 



At 1650 feet I recorded it as being as black as Hades. 

 I was running out of reasonable similes. A school of bril- 

 liantly illuminated lanternfish with pale green lights swam 

 past within three feet of my window, their lights being 

 exceedingly bright. 



A little after three o'clock, when we reached 1700 feet, 

 I hung there for a time and made as thorough a survey 

 as possible. The most concentrated gazing showed no hint 

 of blue left. All outside was black, black, black, and none 

 of my instruments revealed the faintest glimmer to my 

 eye. I had now attained one of the chief objects of this 

 whole dive, namely, to get below the level of humanly 



