there on the Silver shoals, we would encounter some of 

 those legendary deep-sea monsters which we were always 

 reading about but so far had never seen. 



We were well aware that what we were about to at- 

 tempt would require more real seamanship, careful navi- 

 gation, and painstaking planning than anything we had 

 ever done before. There would be no margin for error 

 on the Silver shoals. We would be completely on our own, 

 no other ships within reach, and no shore stations within 

 range of our radio transmitter. 



To find a secure anchorage would be a real problem. 

 When it came to searching the reefs with the small boats, 

 we would be in serious danger at times from the suction 

 of the boilers. When we went underwater, we could expect 

 to find a most perilous bottom with great jagged ridges 

 and pinnacles of coral reaching upward eight to twelve 

 fathoms. We would doubtless encounter fierce sharks from 

 the ocean deeps and schools of barracuda which used the 

 reefs as their feeding grounds. 



Small wonder that we approached the Silver banks 

 with trepidation as well as expectation. 



The Silver Shoals 249 



