﻿Agassis 
  — 
  Explorations 
  of 
  the 
  " 
  Albatross" 
  111 
  

  

  the 
  day, 
  or 
  the 
  greater 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  day, 
  at 
  these 
  atolls, 
  making 
  

   our 
  passages 
  at 
  night, 
  and 
  sounding 
  whenever 
  practicable 
  on 
  

   the 
  way. 
  

  

  After 
  leaving 
  Tahiti 
  we 
  made 
  over 
  100 
  soundings. 
  These 
  

   have 
  shown 
  in 
  a 
  general 
  way 
  that 
  the 
  western 
  islands 
  are 
  prob- 
  

   ably 
  all 
  on 
  a 
  great 
  plateau 
  connected 
  perhaps 
  by 
  the 
  800-fathom 
  

   line. 
  That 
  such 
  islands 
  as 
  Anaa 
  are 
  probably 
  on 
  spurs 
  or 
  inde- 
  

   pendent 
  smaller 
  plateaux, 
  separated 
  from 
  the 
  main 
  plateau 
  by 
  

   somewhat 
  deeper 
  water 
  ; 
  the 
  same 
  may 
  be 
  the 
  condition 
  of 
  

   Raroia 
  and 
  Takume, 
  and 
  of 
  Hao 
  and 
  Am 
  aim, 
  while 
  such 
  

   smaller 
  and 
  isolated 
  islands 
  as 
  Tikei, 
  Aki-Aki, 
  Nukutavake, 
  and 
  

   Pinaki, 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  the 
  Gloucester 
  islands, 
  rise 
  from 
  greater 
  

   depths 
  and 
  are 
  isolated 
  peaks. 
  At 
  any 
  rate, 
  these 
  soundings 
  

   indicate, 
  as 
  do 
  the 
  soundings 
  off 
  the 
  Fijis, 
  that 
  atolls 
  do 
  not 
  

   necessarily 
  rise 
  from 
  very 
  great 
  depths, 
  and 
  that 
  in 
  this 
  char- 
  

   acteristic 
  atoll 
  district, 
  atolls 
  are 
  found, 
  it 
  is 
  true, 
  with 
  steep 
  

   slopes, 
  but 
  rising 
  from 
  moderate 
  depths. 
  The 
  slopes 
  of 
  these 
  

   atolls 
  would 
  probably 
  resemble 
  in 
  every 
  respect 
  the 
  slopes 
  of 
  

   the 
  elevated 
  coralliferous 
  limestone 
  islands 
  characteristic 
  of 
  the 
  

   Lau 
  Group 
  in 
  Fiji. 
  

  

  The 
  deepest 
  sounding 
  among 
  the 
  Paumotus 
  was 
  on 
  the 
  line 
  

   to 
  the 
  northward 
  of 
  Hereheretue 
  in 
  the 
  direction 
  of 
  Mehetia, 
  

   where 
  we 
  found 
  a 
  depth 
  of 
  2521 
  fathoms, 
  and 
  a 
  continuation 
  

   of 
  the 
  red 
  clay 
  characterizing 
  the 
  soundings 
  since 
  we 
  left 
  

   Pinaki. 
  In 
  nearly 
  all 
  the 
  soundings 
  among 
  the 
  Pavimotus, 
  

   even 
  at 
  moderate 
  depths 
  not 
  far 
  from 
  the 
  atolls, 
  we 
  brought 
  

   up 
  manganese 
  particles 
  or 
  small 
  manganese 
  nodules. 
  The 
  last 
  

   haul, 
  made 
  in 
  deep 
  water 
  on 
  the 
  way 
  from 
  Hereheretue, 
  in 
  2140 
  

   fathoms, 
  brought 
  at 
  least 
  half 
  a 
  ton 
  of 
  manganese 
  nodules, 
  

   the 
  bottom 
  being 
  red 
  clay. 
  

  

  We 
  have 
  now 
  steamed 
  about 
  2500 
  miles 
  among 
  the 
  Paumo- 
  

   tus, 
  and 
  although 
  we 
  had 
  not 
  the 
  advantage 
  of 
  the 
  accurate 
  

   surveys 
  of 
  the 
  English 
  Hydrographic 
  charts, 
  which 
  made 
  the 
  

   exploration 
  of 
  Fiji 
  so 
  easy, 
  yet 
  from 
  the 
  structure 
  of 
  these 
  

   atolls 
  it 
  was 
  a 
  comparatively 
  simple 
  task, 
  by 
  steaming 
  around 
  

   the 
  islands 
  and 
  landing 
  wherever 
  practicable, 
  to 
  get 
  a 
  fairly 
  

   good 
  idea 
  of 
  their 
  structure. 
  We 
  have 
  seen 
  nothing 
  in 
  this 
  

   more 
  extended 
  examination 
  of 
  the 
  group 
  tending 
  to 
  show 
  that 
  

   there 
  has 
  anywhere 
  been 
  subsidence. 
  On 
  the 
  contrary, 
  the 
  

   condition 
  of 
  the 
  islands 
  of 
  the 
  Paumotus 
  cannot, 
  it 
  seems 
  to 
  

   me, 
  be 
  explained 
  on 
  any 
  other 
  theory 
  except 
  that 
  they 
  have 
  

   been 
  formed 
  in 
  an 
  area 
  of 
  elevation 
  ; 
  an 
  area 
  of 
  elevation 
  

   extending 
  from 
  Matahiva 
  on 
  the 
  west 
  to 
  Pinaki 
  in 
  the 
  east, 
  

   and 
  from 
  the 
  Gloucester 
  islands 
  on 
  the 
  south 
  to 
  Tikei 
  on 
  the 
  

   north, 
  although 
  the 
  islands 
  in 
  the 
  line 
  of 
  Mangareva 
  to 
  Tahiti 
  

   are 
  separated 
  from 
  the 
  other 
  Paumotus 
  by 
  a 
  deep 
  channel, 
  

   nearly 
  200 
  miles 
  wide 
  and 
  more 
  than 
  2400 
  fathoms 
  in 
  depth, 
  

  

  