Earth's Vast Ocean 



are found where the sounding-line goes sheer 

 down three miles, four miles, five miles, even six 

 miles, before touching bottom. These greater 

 depressions have been named " Deeps." 



At least fifteen of them are known in the 

 Atlantic, and twenty-four in the Pacific ; many 

 of the latter lying close to islands. Some are 

 long in shape, some short ; some are broad, 

 some narrow. One of the most profound, and 

 almost the only one known to exceed five 

 thousand fathoms, lies towards the south-east of 

 the Friendly Islands. A depth there has been 

 found five hundred and thirty feet beyond five 

 geographical miles ; and five geographical miles 

 are equal to almost six of our common miles. 



For a good while the notion was entertained 

 that, probably, the loftiest mountain-peak on 

 land, and the deepest depth in the ocean, 

 would about match one another, reckoned from 

 the sea-level. But this particular "deep" in the 

 Pacific sinks two thousand feet lower than the 

 topmost peak on Earth rises. Mount Everest, 

 in the Himalayas, is twenty-nine thousand feet 

 high ; and this ocean-depth is about thirty-one 

 thousand feet deep. Only one other equal to it 

 has yet been discovered. 



No abyss divides England from France. The 



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