bulging glass eyes and general resemblance to the
coats of mail such as were used by the crusaders and knights of the
middle ages. There were the two pipes, one of which went in at the
top of the helmet, as if the man were going to breathe through the crown
of his head, while the other was adjusted so as to come nearer the
front of the face. One of these was for the admission of fresh air, and
the other for the expulsion of that which was exhaled. Besides this,
there was the rope, fastened around the waist of the diver, to assist
him to the surface should a sudden necessity arise. But, without
going into any detailed description, we may say that the ingenious New
Englander had so constructed it that he required the assistance of no
second person at any portion of the work.

Storms immediately began adjusting the apparatus, the others standing
off and looking on, for he had declined their proffers of service.
The armor had never been tested, and the man might well pause, now
that he was going to stake his life upon the issue, as may be said.

But it was not that fact which caused the mate the most uneasiness,
for his confidence in his own invention was so strong that he would
not have hesitated a moment to trust himself in water of twice the
depth. Indeed, the pearls were so near at hand that a very ordinary
diver would have found no difficulty in bringing them up without the
help of any armor at all--the latter being required by other
considerations.

"Now, all I want done is to allow the two upper ends of the pipes to
be kept clear," said Storms, when he had adjusted the "harness" about
him. "I will do the breathing for myself, provided I am not interfered
with."

The two ends were secured among the coral in such a way that there was
no danger of their being drawn in by any action of the armor itself,
and then Storms, taking an immense sheath-knife in his hand, promptly
stepped off from the shore, and as promptly sank under water.

It was a singular sight the four companions whom he left behind saw,
when they approached to the edge of the water and looked over.

The mate, incased in his armor, looked like some huge, curiously-shaped
shellfish or monster, whose weight was such that he went as straight
down as an arrow, and, a few seconds later, was seen bent over and
moving about the bottom, loosening up the oysters.

This first venture of Storms' was more in the nature of an experiment
or preliminary reconnois