CHAPTER VII
HARPOONING A GIANT SEA VAMPIRE
Colin wakened early the following morning and got up promptly, planning to show his alertness, but when he came downstairs and sauntered out between the oleander bushes toward the water he heard a hail and found that his chief was already up and was busy unpacking some large boxes which had been delivered the night before. The boy hurried to help him.
"What are these, Mr. Collier?" he asked, as some large square boxes with a window in the bottom came into view.
"These are water glasses," the scientist answered, "not the kind that is used by tourists, but some I have had made specially—lenses with reflecting mirrors; with them the bottom of the sea ought to show up clearly. As you notice, they are long enough to be usable from the deck of a fair-sized sailing boat. It's a shame only to half-see things as beautiful as the sea-gardens.
When a thing's worth while, it is so much worth while."
"I thought you would probably have to dive," Colin said, "in order to see the submarine gardens thoroughly."
The curator shook his head.
"You'll find," he said, "that we can see almost as well with these as though you and I were a couple of angel fish, swimming in and out of the grottoes of the coral. The water—as you noticed when we were coming into the harbor—is as clear as crystal. There's nothing in coral sand to make it cloudy or muddy."
"Are we going out this morning?" the boy queried eagerly, as he helped in the unpacking of the various instruments that the museum expert had brought.