32 



THE OPAL SEA 



Scj/lla and 

 Charybdis. 



Rnreg and 

 whirlpools. 



water fancied by Poe never had an existence 

 in fact. 



Tidal currents are responsible for all the 

 fearsome whirlpools of antiquity. Scylla and 

 Charybdis, 



" The implacable Charybdis lashing the stars with its 

 waves '- 



are still to be seen in the Straits of Messina. 

 The agitation of the water is caused by the ebb 

 and flow of tides through a narrow channel; 

 and, though it is said to be dangerous to small 

 craft, we are told that the conquerors of Sicily, 

 more than once, swam their horses through it. 

 The eddy of the Strait of Euripus, near the 

 island of Eubcea, that in the Gulf of Bothnia, 

 or the swift currents like the Blanchard Race 

 which Victor Hugo employs in his Travail- 

 leurs de la Mer, are all caused by high tides 

 that produce tide rips and funnel-shaped 

 whirls. 



These races and whirlpools are interesting 

 to follow because there is nothing more fasci- 

 nating than the slip and glide of water, and 

 even the come and go of the tide on the beach 

 has a charm to those who watch; but they are 

 usually not so dangerous as they look. To be 

 sure " the hungry tide " — though it never hun- 



