UNDER SEA WITH HELMET AND CAMERA 



project the harpoon. He had some success with it. 



As he was about to step on a steel plate, he noticed something peculiar 

 projecting from underneath it. It was a head, and seen directly in front, 

 he said it made him think of a poodle. He went back to the yacht and pre- 

 pared a fish-hook and bait in a hurry, tying the line directly to the hook. 

 From the dinghy, with the water glass he could see the object, and let 

 the bait down in front of it. The creature emerged from beneath the steel 

 plate and was hooked. Richard pulled it part way out of water but it 

 twisted itself around the line, which it finally bit through and escaped. All 

 hands had a good view of the fish, a green Moray, which they estimated to 

 be at least six feet long. These denizens of the deep are shaped like an eel, 

 their color is green, and they have large jaws full of several rows of irregular 

 and sharp teeth. They are said to be venomous, but I have not as yet found 

 an authoritative statement that the bite is fatal. 



Before hearing of this adventure, it was my custom to dive clothed only 

 in bathing trunks and sneakers. Now I use long trousers and shirt. It would 

 not be a foolish precaution to cover the body with heavy material such as 

 canvas, and to have the trousers tied to the shoes so that the ankles would 

 be effectively protected. 



Richard's other experience was one that demonstrates the importance 

 of bearing in mind the physical laws under which the diver works. The 

 helmet is the only equipment he carries. The weights which keep him on 

 the bottom are attached to the helmet. If the diver wants to rise quickly to 

 the surface he can throw the helmet off his head, whereupon he is as free 

 as any swimmer. Richard was on the bottom, thirty feet down. He de- 

 cided he would try, as a matter of experience, coming up without the 

 helmet. Instinctively he took a deep breath just as any ordinary swimmer 

 would do before diving or swimming under water. But he was forgetful 

 of the fact that the air he had in his lungs was under pressure of thirteen 

 pounds to the square inch. As he rose to the surface the pressure of the 



no 



