Here on these Silver shoals, eighty miles from the near- 

 est land, constantly swept by the endless waters of the 

 Atlantic, we had found another world, of such beauty 

 as to confound any attempt to describe it. 



Where were the schools of threatening sharks and 

 evil barracudas with hunger in their eyes? Where was the 

 giant octopus which waited to wind itself about its victim 

 as he approached the black, cavernous depths which con- 

 tained the wreck? 



True, the lone barracuda which had disturbed me 

 that first day in the reef harbor was still around. I now 

 looked upon him as a friend. Frequently, when we were 

 in the water near Sea Diver or in the vicinity of the wreck 

 reef, we had seen him lingering on the fringes of our 

 shortened underwater field of vision. He never came very 

 close. 



It is only natural for man to fear the unknown, and we 

 had had our share of qualms both before leaving for the 

 Silver shoals and after our arrival. Fortunately, familiarity 

 has a way of deahng with most fears. And that, tempered 

 with a cautious and careful approach to each problem as 

 it appeared, had saved us from any unfortunate experi- 

 ences. First we had ascertained and solved the problems 

 of safeguarding our boats in the midst of these reefs. Then 

 we had coped with the hazards of diving and maintain- 

 ing diving equipment among the rough, dangerous coral 

 formations. For nine days we had worked our crew and 

 our equipment to the full without a single mishap or the 

 slightest damage to either. We felt justifiably proud that 

 we had been able not only to survive, but to enjoy every 

 moment, although the history of the Silver shoals is one 

 of death and destruction. 



As I thought of the accounts of other expeditions to 

 the Silver shoals, I was impressed with the fact that this 



The Silver Shoals 287 



