1 68 THE CALL OV THE SEA 



(From TAree Cruises of the " Blake'") 



n^HE monotony, dreariness, and desolation of 

 the deeper parts of this submarine scenery 

 can scarcely be realised. The most barren terres- 

 trial districts must seem diversified when compared 

 with the vast expanse of ooze which covers the 

 deeper parts of the ocean, — a monotony only re- 

 lieved by the fall of the dead carcasses of pelagic 

 animals and plants, which slowly find their way 

 from the surface to the bottom, and supply the 

 principal food for the scanty fauna found living 

 there. 



Nearer to the continental masses we find the 

 slopes inhabited by a more abundant and more 

 varied fauna, increasing in variety and numbers 

 according to the amount of food available. But 

 no matter how varied or how abundant life may 

 be, the general aspect of the slopes must be dreary 

 in the extreme, and can only be compared in 

 character to those higher mountain regions where 

 we find occasional fields of wild flowers and low 

 shrubs, or to those zones lying beyond the limits 

 of forests, where vegetation is scanty and poor 

 and forms but a slight covering to the earth's 

 surface. 



It is true that along the continental slopes, 

 where there is an ample supply of food, we rind 

 animal life in great abundance, and there are un- 



