STARS OF THE SEA. 



As the waves washed in, M. de Tessan describes the light 

 as appearing like the vivid flashes of lightning. "Klighu-d 

 up the chamber that I and my companions occupied in the 

 house of Mr. Ball, though it was situated more than fifty 

 yards distant from the breakers. I even attempted to write 

 by the light, but the flashes were of too short duration." 



When a vessel is ploughing through masses of these 

 animals, the effect is extremely brilliant. An American 

 captain states that when his ship traversed a zone of these 

 animals in the Indian Ocean, nearly thirty miles in extent, 

 the light emitted by these myriads of fire-bodies, of which 

 he estimated there were thirty thousand in a cubic foot 

 of water, eclipsed the brightest stars ; the milky way was 

 but dimly seen ; and as far as the eye could reach the water 

 presented the appearance of a vast, gleaming sea of molten 

 metal, of purest white. The sails, masts, and rigging cast 

 weird shadows all about ; flames sprang from the bow as the 

 ship surged along, and great waves of living light spread out 

 ahead, a fascinating and appalling sight. 



The enormous quantity of Noctilucce in the water explains 

 the intensity of the light. In experiments made at Bologne, 

 one-seventh to one-half of a given amount of water taken 

 up consisted of these minute light-givers, and Rymer Jones 

 found thirty thousand in a cubic foot. According to Quatre- 

 fages, the light of Noctilucce in full vigor is a clear blue ; 

 but, if the water is agitated, it becomes nearly, if not quite 

 white, producing rich silvery gleams sprinkled with greenish 

 and bluish spangles. 



Regarding the intensity of the light, a tube fifteen milli- 

 metres in diameter, containing a bed of Noctilucce at the 

 surface twenty millimetres thick, emitted light sufficient 



