Coral islands are among the most striking phenomena of the tropical
seas. Whitsunday Island in the midst of the Pacific is an excellent
example. Rising but a few feet above the surface of the ocean, it forms
a narrow, unbroken, nearly circular ring, surrounding a central lagoon
of quiet water. When first seen, it presents the aspects of an angry
surf breaking on a white beach of coral sand, in strong contrast with
the deep blue color of the sea. Behind this a garland of luxuriant
vegetation, whose tropical beauty, enhanced by the noble cocoa-palm
encircles the quiet waters of the lagoon, while all around spreads the
broad blue sea.
=TWO OF THE GREATEST MARVELS OF LAND AND SEA=
[Illustration: =THE GRAND CANYON OF THE COLORADO RIVER, ARIZONA=
This greatest of nature’s gorges is more than twelve miles across, a
mile deep, and extends over two hundred miles in length. This whole vast
space has been sculptured by the wear of the river through countless
centuries. Its unparalleled magnitude, its architectural forms and
suggestions, and its wealth of color effects create a picture that is
grand beyond description.]
[Illustration: =THE BARRIER CORAL REEF OF AUSTRALIA=
This vast reef of coral islands was built by a colony of coral insects,
or polyps, as innumerable as the stars of the Milky Way. It rose from
the floor of the ocean, builded out of myriads upon myriads of the dead
skeletons of these marvellous insects.]