172 THE OCEAN 



called Cozumel, a beautiful tropical islet al- 

 most unknown to the outside world, but won- 

 derfully interesting to scientists. Here are 

 numerous ruins of ancient Indian temples and 

 many great carved statues or monoliths exact- 

 ly like those found upon the mainland of Yu- 

 catan and Central America. This has led 

 many scientists to believe that Cozumel was 

 once a portion of Yucatan itself, and this 

 theory is borne out by the fact that on the 

 shores of Yucatan an ancient pathway of stone 

 disappears beneath the sea and a similar path- 

 way is found upon Cozumel also leading up 

 from beneath the waves. If, as supposed, the 

 land once extended unbroken between the 

 mainland and the island great populous cities 

 may have been engulfed when the sea won its 

 battle and swept victoriously above the forests 

 and the land. Perchance, if we could explore 

 these ruins far beneath the waves, we might 

 find the long-lost secrets of the ancient people 

 who once lived in Yucatan and built the mar- 

 vellous buildings found deep within the jun- 

 gle. No one has ever been able to explain 

 why these buildings and cities were suddenly 



