170 MARVELS OF FISH LIFE 



tance of forty feet. The plate glass had burst in con- 

 sequence of unequal expansion of the glass, due to 

 the cold water on the one side and the intense heat of 

 the sun on the other. It was a narrow escape, and on 

 the few occasions that I have used this tank since, I 

 have always kept the glass shaded until actually 

 wanted for photography. 



To those likely to go on fish photographic excur- 

 sions I would strongly recommend them to confine 

 their attentions to the West Coast. Here the water 

 is much clearer than on the East Coast, and renders 

 photography, both in tanks and in natural environ- 

 ments, an easier matter. 



Hitherto I have confined my remarks to tank photo- 

 graphy alone, but far more fascinating is the photo- 

 graphy of fish in their natural environments. It is pos- 

 sible to undertake this in various ways. The reader 

 may don a diver's suit, as did Dr. Bouton, of Paris, and 

 descend into the sea with the camera encased in a 

 water-tight box ; or sink a camera with a fixed focus 

 into the water, and expose the plate by pulling a string. 

 Professor Reighard, of Michelin, wades into the water 

 with a reflex camera merged below the surface. These 

 methods, however, do not appear to have given very 

 satisfactory photographic results, for the simple reason 

 that it is necessary to be within a few feet of a fish to 

 photograph him under the water, and the operator not 

 being concealed, the fish do not stay to be photo- 

 graphed. It certainly might be possible to descend in 



