164 REPORT OF LAGOON BORINGS. 



ship caused such sudden strains on the hoisting gear that nothing at my command 

 would stand. It was therefore decided to unscrew the pipes near the bottom of the 

 lagoon, and the ship's diver was sent down to insure that no faulty joint would cause 

 the pipes to unscrew above the navigation level, say 30 feet. Fortunately the 

 weakest joint in the pipe was found to exist 34 feet from the lower end, so that 

 amount of tubing represents the total loss caused by our not being able to draw it in 

 the usual way. 



We started to sink No. 2 bore in 101|- feet of water at 3.30 p.m. on the 19th 

 August, and found Halimeda sand with fragmentary shells, similar to that described 

 in No 1 bore, to 193 feet. At this depth hard coral was met with having soft bands, 

 an inch or two wide, at from 4 to 6 inches intervals. This formation extended to 

 196 feet, when we encountered coral gravel and sand very similar, as the specimens 

 will show, to that described in bore No. 1 . The coral rock or boulder was too solid to 

 break with the appliances I had, and the same difficulties of under-reaming presenting 

 themselves, as previously described, it was decided to abandon the attempt to sink 

 a bore in the lagoon with the appliances then on hand. So at 10 A.M. on the 

 20th August we started to pull the tubes up, and at 1.30 p.m. all the gear was 

 stowed away, and I reluctantly turned my attention to other matters. 



It is perhaps only fair to mention that the lagoon borings here described were 

 undertaken without the least idea of the formation to be expected, and were carried 

 out under the most unfavourable circumstances possible. On account of the limited 

 funds available, appliances and tools suitable for all contingencies could not have been 

 provided, and the limited time at our disposal and the small space available on the 

 warship would not allow of different sizes of tubes being used. Added to this the 

 inconvenience of working from the bow of a ship already crowded with necessary gear, 

 and the total inexperience of the men at this particular class of work, it will be at 

 once apparent that, had it not been for the co-operation and energy of the captain, 

 officers and men of H.M.S. " Porpoise," the work could not have been carried out at 

 all. In connection with this I would like to mention the kindly help and valuable 

 advice I received from Mr. A. E. Tomkins, Chief Engineer, who went to a large 

 amount of trouble, under exceptionally trying circumstances, to assist the work. 



