Victor Eugene Kroemer - The passing acquaintances of Arthur Conan Doyle - Part 1

I was reviewing some articles recently that I'd posted to the blog, and realized that I had missed one. While I had described my plans to capture the 'passing acquaintances' of Doyle in Australia, I failed to post the first article in this series, which appeared (like of all of them) in the Passengers' Log.

Not surprisingly, the first person Doyle mentions when he arrived in Adelaide was a Spiritualist - the purpose of his tour and the focus of his memoirs.

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The passing acquaintances of Arthur Conan Doyle - Part 1

Victor Eugene Kroemer

By Matthew D. Hall

During his tour of Australia and New Zealand, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle interacted with many people, and spoke to tens of thousands in his audiences. Yet ACD’s book describing the tour, ’The Wanderings of a Spiritualist’, mentions relatively few people by name. The pages of ’The Passenger’s Log’ has included a series of articles identifying sites and buildings visited by ACD on his tour of Australia, and an excellent essay on Carlyle Smythe, ACD's local agent on his trip titled "An Admirable Cobber" (Log 10.4) by Passenger Arthur Williams. Smythe was of course central of the visit of Doyle and accompanied the author and his family around Australia. There were others mentioned in Doyle’s memoirs, but fewer than one might expect given the length of the book. Why did ACD choose to mention those that he did? Who were these Australians? This occasional series aims to provide biosketches of each person mentioned in ’The Wanderings of a Spiritualist’, and point to more detailed resources. 

Some decisions must be made: for example, the first person mentioned is “the Premier (sic), Mr. Hughes” who had sent a letter of welcome to ACD. While Billy Hughes is mentioned, it was not in the context of a personal meeting, and so an unnecessary biography of a well-known Australian historical figure is avoided. As a side-note, it would be interested to know whether this letter exists ‘in the archives’. It is also clear from perusing newspaper articles from the time that other people ACD met are mentioned in newspapers, but not in ‘Wanderings’. These individuals may be revisited later in the series.  

And so, the first individual mentioned on Australian shores (page 68, see Note 1) is Victor Cromer, who ACD met with in the Grand Central Hotel in Adelaide where the Doyle family was staying in late September and early October 1920:

“We had a small meeting of spiritualists in our hotel sitting-room, under the direction of Mr. Victor Cromer, a local student of the occult, who seems to have considerable psychic power. He has a small circle for psychic development which is on new lines, for the neophytes who are learning clairvoyance sit around in a circle in silence, while Mr. Cromer endeavours by mental effort to build up the thought form of some object, say a tree, in the centre of the room. After a time he asks each of the circle what he or she can see, and has many correct answers. With colours in the same way he can convey impressions to his pupils. It is clear that telepathy is not excluded as an explanation, but the actual effect upon the participants is according to their own account, visual rather than mental. We had an interesting sitting with a number of these developing mediums present, and much information was given, but little of it could be said to be truly evidential. After seeing such clairvoyance as that of Mr. Tom Tyrell {See Note 2} or others at home, when a dozen names and addresses will be given together with the descriptions of those who once owned them, one is spoiled for any lesser display.”.

 

Figure 1. Victor Eugene Kroemer, sourced from the Workers Educational Association blog at http://weahistoryblog.blogspot.com/2013/05/victor-eugene-cromer-man-with-mission.html 

Victor Cromer was born Victor Eugene Kroemer (1883-1930), and he earned an entry in the Australian Dictionary of Biography {ADB, Note 3}. It is likely that Kroemer modified his Germanic surname to the homophonic but more ‘English’ Cromer early in World War 1 - the surname Kroemer appears in newspaper articles in 1915, but from that year forward the name Cromer is used instead. Briefly, Cromer was born in South Australia, and educated till 12 when he embarked upon intensive self-education at public institutions in Adelaide. Cromer became active in a range of religious and political organizations, and was also active in spiritualist movements - as the ADB entry notes: "as a youth, Victor often found himself 'surrounded by a bluish or violet light', it was not until later that he 'discovered the nature of that force’”. In 1903 Kroemer moved to Victoria, worked in the newspaper industry and joined the socialist movement. In that latter capacity Kroemer represented the Socialist Federation of Australasia at the seventh congress of the Second International at Stuttgart, Germany, he married his wife in Paris in 1907 and lived in the England where the family had three children, ultimately returning to Australia in 1913. In Adelaide again, Kroemer worked as a journalist, taught, and expanded teachings on spiritualism.

Kroemer’s interests extended into healing, and was based in Christianity: "To him the healing of early Christian times was the outcome of a spiritual power, the secret of the use of which had been lost when the emphasis was placed upon the power and prestige of the Christian Church as a political institution rather than upon "the gifts of the spirit.” Throughout the ages this force, he held, has undoubtedly been operative in the case of certain individuals, giving rise to many recorded seemingly miraculous healings.” {Note 4} 

It is clear in newspapers of the time that there was strong awareness of ACD’s impending visit, and Kroemer was certainly looking forward to his arrival. Just a month prior to the visit Kroemer was quoted in the Adelaide Advertiser:

“SPREAD OF SPIRITUALISM. Spiritualists in Australia expect that the cult will derive impetus from the coming visit of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Mr. Victor Cromer, a leading Adelaide exponent of the doctrine, stated on Friday that spiritualism had already made great progress in the Commonwealth…” {Note 5}

Cromer also responded to critics of spiritualism (and by extension ACD) in the newspapers, and in doing so made an insightful observation: “Sir Arthur Conan Doyle has risked his whole career by associating himself with spiritualism, and a man of his keen intellectual attainments is not likely to dedicate his life to a cause in which he did not thoroughly believe after careful investigation… I would like to point out to Mr. Davey, in conclusion, that Sir Arthur Conan Doyle will be here in a week or two, and he might be doing everybody a service by interviewing him, and pointing out to him how deceived he is….” {Note 6}.

The Adelaide newspapers were evidently not privy to (or less likely, interested in) the meetings between ACD and students of the occult such as Cromer, and no contemporary reports of such meetings in Adelaide appear in the papers. But the connection between ACD and Victor Cromer did not completely terminate after their meeting in the Grand Central Hotel. In 1925, ACD’s prophesy of a 'coming world catastrophe’ was defended by Cromer {Note 7}. A brief article in 1926 revealed that Cromer had received a short letter from ACD regarding his defense of the aforementioned catastrophe: “Sir Arthur Conan Doyle writes to me as follows….”

 

Figure 2. From The Register (Adelaide), Friday 8 January 1926, page 13

Around 1926, Cromer relocated to Sydney with his family where he established an institute for spiritual healing. Regular advertisements offered demonstrations of faith healing power, some of which received considerable attention in the press. Cromer must have had grand plans for his growing practice, as the National Library of Australia holds a design by the architect Walter Burley Griffin for a planned ‘sanitorium’ (sic) at Covecrag (now named Middle Cove) in Northern Sydney {Note 8}. Unfortunately Cromer couldn’t turn his powers on himself (apologies to the Editor for the pun), and he died suddenly aged 46 following treatment for appendicitis at Cabarisha Private Hospital (now the Castlecrag Private Hospital), Castlecrag. Cromer was cremated, and I have been unable to identify a final resting place for his remains.

Figure 3. The Victor E Cromer Sanitorium designed by Walter Burley Griffin, Architect, Castlecrag in the 1920s {Note 8}.

Notes

1. I am using the 1988 reprint published by Ronin Publishing, Inc. Berkeley CA.
2. Thomas Tyrrell, spiritualist and clairvoyant from Lancashire, England (1858-1928).
3. Frank Bongiorno, 'Kroemer, Victor Eugene (1883–1930)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/kroemer-victor-eugene-13035/text23569 , published first in hardcopy 2005, accessed online 23 June 2023
4. ’The Work of Victor Cromer’, in The Voice of the North (NSW), Monday 10 March 1930, page 6.
5. ’Spread of Spiritualism’, in The Advertiser (Adelaide), Saturday 21 August 1920, page 9.
6. ’Spiritualism’, in The Daily Herald (Adelaide), Tuesday 31 August 1920, page 7.
7. ’The Coming World Catastrophe’, in The Register (Adelaide), Wednesday 23 September 1925, page 15.
8. Griffin, Walter Burley & Griffin, Walter Burley. 1920, Victor E. Cromer Sanitorium, Covecrag, [4] , viewed 24 June 2023 http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-150260346  

The Passing Acquaintances of Arthur Conan Doyle - Part 5: Edgar Ravenswood Waite

The latest Passengers' Log (PL), from the Sydney Passengers, has arrived - it's always wonderful to receive, and as always has some excellent articles. I do wish more people were subscribing/joining - I think PL is one of t.he best Sherlockian/Doylean journals out there for content.

This issue has the latest article in my slow-walk series shining a light on the personalities that ACD mentions in his book on visiting Australia/NZ titled 'Wanderings of a Spiritualist'. 

Part 5 describes the final person Doyle mentions on the Adelaide phase of his visit (the first city he stayed at). I wrote this article in partnership with Francesca Zilio of the South Australian Museum. I've referenced Fran multiple times on my blog - she has produced some wonderful scholarship on Doyle's days in Adelaide and locations he visited.

As always, once my articles are published I provide the submitted (not final) version of the article on my blog. It also gives me a chance to add one or two things that didn't survive the editorial process.

The Passing Acquaintances of Arthur Conan Doyle - Part 5: Edgar Ravenswood Waite 

Matthew D. Hall and Francesca Zilio [1]

During his tour of Australia and New Zealand, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (ACD) interacted with many people, and spoke to tens of thousands in his audiences. Yet ACD’s book describing the tour, ‘The Wanderings of a Spiritualist’, mentions relatively few people by name. This article is the fifth in a series that shines a light on those people ACD mentions by name on his visit. Why did ACD choose to mention those that he did (and not others)? Who were these Australians? The biosketches presented aim to address these questions, and point to more detailed resources. 

The fifth and final identity that Doyle described spending time with while visiting Adelaide was Edgar Ravenswood Waite (1866-1928). In the second installment of this series, we examined the intriguing character Thomas Paine Bellchambers.[2] On the 29th of September, Doyle went out of his way to make an expedition to Bellchambers' nature reserve with a large party, and Waite was part of that group. The visit is described in detail in the article on Bellchambers, but Waite is mentioned by name:

"Bellchambers came in to guide us, for there is no one to ask upon these desolate tracks, and it is easy to get bushed. Mr. Waite, the very capable zoologist of the museum, joined the party, and with two such men the conversation soon got to that high nature talk which represents the really permanent things of material life—more lasting than thrones and dynasties. I learned of the strange storks, the "native companions" who meet, 500 at a time, for their stately balls, where in the hush of the bush they advance, retreat, and pirouette in their dignified minuets. I heard of the bower birds, who decorate their homes with devices of glass and pebbles. There was talk, too, of the little red beetles who have such cunning ways that they can fertilise the insectivorous plants without being eaten, and of the great ants who get through galvanised iron by the aid of some acid-squirting insect which they bring with them to the scene of their assault. I heard also of the shark's egg which Mr. Waite had raped from sixty feet deep in Sydney Harbour, descending for the purpose in a diver's suit, for which I raised my hat to him.”

 

South Australian Museum Archives Edgar Waite Collection AA 356

Edgar Ravenswood Waite was Director of the Adelaide Museum from 1914 to 1928 (it is now known as the South Australian Museum). What Doyle doesn't mention in his travelogue is that he had already met Waite several days prior to the visit to Bellchambers. As part of research organizing an exhibition on Doyle in Adelaide, Fran Zilio at the South Australian Museum, (one of the authors of this article) examined Waite's diaries. Zilio presented to the Sydney Passengers on 28 April 2024, and a recording of this talk can be viewed on Youtube.[3]

 

South Australian Museum Archives Edgar Waite Collection AA 356/1/67

Waite's diary states that on Thursday 23rd September, Doyle had called upon Waite (i.e. walked the 500 metres from his hotel to the museum), but Waite was out and Doyle left tickets to his lecture. The following day, Friday 24th, Waite returned the favor and called upon Doyle, and later that day Doyle visited the museum for an hour, guided by Waite. Zilio found that on his visit to the museum Doyle was particularly engaged by a display of sea urchins (echinus), that may have influenced Doyle's analogy of the earth as an urchin in his Challenger story 'When the world screamed’.

The shark story clearly impressed Doyle, as in his rapidly-prepared article for The Register on his visit with Bellchambers, he went out of his way to add 'No account of my day could be complete which did not acknowledge the company and teaching of Mr. E. R. Waite, Director of the Museum, who placed his stores of knowledge at my disposal. I admire learning, but I admire still more a man who Is a man; and when I learned that this gentle naturalist had gone down 60 ft. in Sydney Harbour to steal the egg of a shark, I took off my hat to him. That's a form of bird-nesting that's worth doing.’[4]

Waite was born in Leeds, Yorkshire in 1866, and his enthusiasm for natural science led him to study it in Manchester, and becoming curator at a museum there. Waite married before embarking to an appointment at the Australian Museum in Sydney in 1893 where Waite was zoologist and 'fish curator'.  In Sydney, Waite collected over 18,000 specimens, and his diary describes in detail the remarkable experience of being taken to the bottom of Sydney Harbour in a diving bell off Shark Island (though whether Waite himself collected the aforementioned shark eggs is not clear, though he certainly published on them [5]).

Waite took part in several expeditions, including to Tuvalu, and when he joined Canterbury Museum in New Zealand in 1906 he made expeditions to the sub-Antarctic including with Mawson. After arriving in Adelaide as Director in 1914, Waite made a series of expeditions including to Strzelecki and Cooper creeks, and New Guinea. In the latter place he contracted malaria, and in 1926 had visited museums in the US and Europe. Waite was a highly accomplished scientist and museum administrator, who published books and a large number of scientific articles. His malaria recurred in 1928 and he died in Hobart while attending a scientific meeting, was cremated in Melbourne, and his ashes were scattered at Fawkner Memorial Park.[6] Given that he lived in Adelaide, the reason this would occur in Melbourne are not clear. A detailed biography of Waite was published in 'Record of the South Australian Museum' following his death. [7]

The Argus (Melbourne, Vic), 25 Jan 1928

We have some details of Waite's interactions with Doyle because his seventy six diary volumes (!!) are held by the South Australia Museum, and digitized.[8] 'No. 67' covers the period when Doyle was visiting Adelaide, and Waite's entries reveal the administrative drama of being given leave to accompany Doyle to Humbug Scrub. After being invited on Friday 24th to 'go with him to Humbug Scrub', Waite sent a request seeking approval - and the next four days involved a flurry of communications debating who was allowed to approve Waite's 'leave' to be in the field that day on official duties. The day before the trip, Waite was still waiting for permission from the Secretary, and spoke with the reporter Whittington at the 'Adelaide Register' who would be attending, to inform them he could not join. Waite told Whittington that 'it was a matter of etiquette with the President'. That President was Sir William Sowden (1858-1943), also editor of the 'Register', and so Whittington appealed directly to Sowden who 'sent word by his Secretary that he not only gave the requisite permission but desired me to go'.

 

South Australian Museum Archives Edgar Waite Collection AA 356/1/67

At Humbug Scrub, after seeing the fauna Waite recorded in his diary that 'Sir C.D. showed me some of his 'spirit photos'. One showed a little girl surrounded by Elves, they were dressed just as in children's books!! He fully believes in them. All I ventured to say in respect to the above mentioned "photo" was that it looked as though the girls dream had been materialized.' Doyle's articles in the Strand Magazine publishing the Cottingley Fairies photographs was still a few months away.[9] Waites' reaction that the fairies appeared like images from a children's book proved to be accurate but it took sixty years to be absolutely proven.[10]

Two days after the visit to Humbug Scrub, Waite wrote in his diary that he 'Developed films exposed at Humbug Scrub.' There are two photographs in the SA Museum collection taken by Waite at Humbug Scrub, and there may be others not yet identified.[11]

With that, Doyle departed for his next Australian destination (Melbourne). But Waite's diaries reveal follow-up from his visit to Adelaide. Waite pasted Doyle's article from 'The Register' when it appeared after the trip to Humbug Scrub. On 14 November 1921, a colleague drew Waite's attention 'to Conan Doyle's new book "Wanderings of a Spiritualist" in which my name is mentioned in association with Bellchambers.' Doyle clearly took away good memories of Waite, as in December 1922 the British spiritualist Horace Leaf was sent by Doyle to Australia to lecture, and on 14 December 1922 Waite notes 'Mr & Mrs Leaf friends of Conan Doyle spent afternoon at museum'.

 

Register (South Australia), Wednesday 21 October 1925

Finally, on 21st October 1925, Waite recorded in his diary that he took his son Claude 'to pictures Conan Doyle's Lost World'. Newspaper records indicate it was screened that evening at the Star Theatre, Norwood (very Doylean!). It is a shame that the museum Director did not record his thoughts on the marvelous fauna on display - a far cry from Humbug Scrub and Adelaide.

References

1. Affiliation: South Australian Museum, Adelaide, SA, Australia 

2. Matthew D. Hall, The Passing Acquaintances of Arthur Conan Doyle – Part 2: Thomas P. Bellchambers, Passengers’ Log.

3. Francesca Zilio presentation to Sydney Passengers, 28 April 2024, available at the SP Youtube channel www.youtube.com/@sydneypassengers3476 

4. Arthur Conan Doyle, “These Things Endure” – The Verities of Nature, The Register (Adelaide, SA), Fri 1 Oct 1920.

5. Edgar R. Waite, On the egg-cases of some Port Jackson sharks, The Journal of the Linnean Society, Vol. 25, 1896, p325-329.

6. Funeral announcements, The Argus (Melbourne), Wed 25 Jan 1928, & Fawkner Memorial Park burials index.

7. Herbert M. Hale, Obituary and bibliography of Mr. Edgar R. Waite, Records of the South Australian Museum, Vol 3, No 4, 1928, p345-359.

8. The digitized diaries can be accessed at: australian.museum/learn/collections/museum-archives-library/edgar-waite-diaries/ 

9. Arthur Conan Doyle, Fairies Photographed, Strand Magazine, Dec 1920.

10. Frances Griffiths, Reflections on the Cottingley Fairies – Frances Griffiths – In her own words, JMJ Publications, 2009.

11. An inventory of archival holdings related to Waite at the South Australian Museum can be accessed at www.samuseum.sa.gov.au/collection/archives/provenances/aa356 

As an addendum, while I was writing the article I went down an enjoyable rabbit-hole reading Waite's digitized diaries. I was particularly intrigued in whether Waite directly collected a Port Jackson shark egg in Sydney Harbour. Fran pointed me to the right place/date in the diary where Waite describes visiting Sydney Harbour.

It has nothing to do with Sherlockian/Doylean 'things', except that it's easy to understand why Doyle would have admired the adventurous nature of underwater exploration in a diving helmet and suit in the late 1800s right in the middle of Sydney Harbour! So I'm including a transcript from the digitized diaries here - which again can be sourced at this link and I added some editing into that available.

It's hard not to think of Doyle's later story 'Maracot Deep' when reading this long but engrossing narrative:

Tuesday 2nd October 1894

Met Hedley at the Museum at 9.0 a latter awaiting us from Grunshaw asking us to be at Circular Quay at 10.0 at which time we turned up. A government launch came for us but Mr. Darley having promised to take his brother (Sir Frederick Darley) to see the war ship "Ringarooma" invited us to accompany them. We steamed up the Parramatta River and foudn the Ringarooma in dry dock after her release from the coral reef. She had been damaged, but little. I exposed plates on her when we went aboard and were shown  the conning tower whence the ship is fought. Crammed with appliances, speaking tubes, electrical appliances, sighting and torpedo firing switches &c Then we saw the guns, quick firing, nordenfeldts, &c. moved and sighted with ease and without machinery so beautifully are they balanced. Having learnt much we rejoined the launch and steamed back to Princes Stairs where the Chief Justice went ashore.

It was now 12 o'clock and soon after we started for Shark reef. This is a hidden range of rock covered but dangerous to large vessels at low tide it is therefore being blasted portions of the loosened rock are passed into deep water while others are craned up and placed in a large barge. As we arrived the two divers just came up and we naturally looked at them critically to see what effect the immersion had upon them. I noticed that they sat quietly until their massive 'armour' was removed a position I did not fully realize until afterwards.

We were told that a blast was about to be fired and on turning the switch a violent report took place but I did not perceive any movement or disturbance of the water. The divers said

that the tide was running out very strongly and as it was equally apparent below with above we waited two hours, & passed the time in inspecting the arrangements & asking questions &c. A large flat barge strongly anchored was the base of operations at one end a short ladder hung over & dipped 6 feet into the water, a couple of yards from this were some backless seat

whereon the divers sat while being dressed and unrobed as it is simply impossible to dress

oneself, further back were 4 boxes each provided with two wheel-handles these were the air

pumps each worked by two men who are guided in their actions by a needle moving over a dial which shows the pressure obtained. On one side was a rectangular opening to admit the air which after going through the pumps is conveyed to the helmet of the diver through canvas covered tubes, coils of these lay on the deck each length carefully made up into large coils to prevent kinking. The cranes, Engines &c were chiefly confined to a special barge adjoining - we were told that we might experience pain in the ears which would perhaps become distracting as we descended but would pass away in five minutes leaving nothing more than a headache for

the rest of the day. In the meantime the two men got dressed and went down, I had

imagined that the air would be sent down one tube & return by another, instead it escapes by a valve which also allows any excess of pressure to escape, more air is therefore sent down than is absolutely required, there is also a tap in the helmet which may be opened if the pressure becomes too great but as this is not controlled by a valve water may get in if the pressure is reduced too much. It was easy to watch the course of the men by the masses of air rising to the surface & bubbling up, due allowance being made for currents &c.

I was surprised at the distance the men travelled & mentally resolved that I would not leave the barge so far. Even as the surface was approached the divers could not be well seen in consequence of the opacity caused by the deterioration of the water. After being down what seemed to me an immensely long time the divers ascended & announced the tide had considerably abated they brought up with them some fish they had speared, Coris lineolatus & After divesting ourselves of coat & vest together with coins knife & anything hard in our pockets, we seated ourselves on the seats & removed shoes - collar &c, also collar stud, these "hard" things we were told would be forced against us by the great pressure of the water & become painful we were informed that a diver would each take us in hand. I was to have the foreman Mr. Cameron & Hedley Mr. Stirling the former had on one occasion been down to the prodigious depth of 140 feet. 

We were to be taken 25 feet & more if we could stand it. 25 would do for me I thought! As a preliminary operation we were very warmly clad woolen stockings to the top of our thighs & thick jerseys. One of the men offered me a woollen cap "No thank you". The Diver said that was well it might slip over my eyes and as it could not be reached with the hands might become somewhat awkward next the boots were brought they were enormous in size & weight, of stout leather and thick straps the toes shod with immense cups of brass & the soles with lead an inch thick. They were placed upon scales & each weighed 22 pounds before these were donned I was put into the dress made of waterproof canvas reaching to the neck & wholly encasing the feet on to which strapped at the shoulders the dress was surmounted & attached to an immense shoulder plate passing over the upper part of the chest and back & studded with screws over which was passed a broad India rubber collar which fitted the brass plate & studded with holes corresponding with the screws. A neck piece was then attached by means of nuts which were turned home on to the screw with a key. The arms of the dress terminated in cuffs about 8 inches in length of thick india-rubber. As my wrists were somewhat thin, this was supplemented by several stout rubber bands, & I was told that I might imbibe a little water at the wrists in spite of all these precautions but I was not to get alarmed. Hedley who was being simultaneously dressed required even more precaution in this direction than I. Although the cuffs were not very tight fitting above my hands had to be soaped & considerable force applied by two men to get them on. Having got on so far we were raised to our feet & Mr Grimshaw to whom I had handed the Rover exposed 2 plates on the four of us & I said he might use the camera as he liked. Our two leaders were next helmeted and descended the ladder at the bottom of which they would wait for us. The collar-piece I have mentioned terminated  above in a raised circular rim with intermittent threads thus:- the inner rim of the helmet has antagonistic threads so that when placed on & turned is fixed in position, considerable force has to be used to do this however.

The helmet is a large & massive affair & is fixed to move with the body only the head can be moved more or less freely inside and sight may be obtained through 3 glazed port holes of which the front one is removable - all these windows have a downwards aspect so that the ground may be seen without bending the body unduly forward. It is, as I found somewhat difficult to obtain an upward view, such requiring the body to be bent backward very much, more than I could manage in the air as the heavy helmet would have thrown me backwards. Towards the back of the helmet the air tube enters, when on the body this latter is brought down & secured in front to prevent any tension at its attachment. 

At the top is the air valve & towards one side the cock previously mentioned - A stout canvas coat was placed over me & a rope passed under my arms and secured from slipping downwards. The total weight of my rigging was about 2 cwt &I had to be assisted to the ladder. The helmet & shoulder piece was so heavy as to cause me pain while in the air, this was increased by placing heavy lead weights one on my chest & the other on my back & lashed into position it will be gathered that the only parts of me that were free were my hands. I reached the ladder & with difficulty got my feet on to the rungs gently of necessity. I got down, the men started the air pump I heard the air rush into the helmet & the face piece was screwed on. Here unknown to me Mr Grimshaw exposed a plate. I got my feet into the water & then got on

easier, as I lowered the air rushed out of boots & folds in the dress. As soon as I got my

head below I heard the air rushing out through the helmet it sounded like a waterfall on my head which I soon forgot. 

On reaching the bottom rung of the ladder I let go & felt myself seized by my

conductor & together we quietly & gently glided down the light deepening as we descended very soon it seemed to me my foot touched the ground from which I slightly rebounded & then came to a stop. I felt no difficulty whatever in breathing & in fact seemed scarcely aware that I was not breathing under ordinary conditions. I experienced no pain & was just conscious of increased pressure in my right ear not noticing it in my left ear in which the tympanum is perforate. I soon found great difficulty in moving and it was with difficulty that I could face Mr Cameron, he drew

from a capacious pocket an his right side a small slate with a pencil attached by string & on it wrote "How do your feel?" "Comfortable" I wrote. The slate is also used for sending up messages respecting the management of the crane & other matters. My conductor took hold of me & commenced to lead me away. What a slow process. I could scarcely move, not on account

of my own weight, this was nothing in the water but on account of its density & as my feet were the heavier I found that the upper part of the body inclined forward the feet dragging behind hence I saw the necessity of the thick toe-caps. We settled down in 25 feet & the bottom having been blasted showed masses of Sandstone which even at that depth was as light as above on a dull day, but on this occasion the water was illuminated by bright sunshine. When I came to a hole or rock I felt inclined to creep about as though I was on dry land. My guide drew out his slate & wrote "don't be afraid" I then found that if I wanted to go into any hole I had only to step off & glided so gently downward also if an incline had to be ascended a spring would lift me a little way off my feet & I should again settle down but every movement was conducted in a most deliberate way to reach anything at my feet was a task it took some time to bring down the air laden upper part (helmet) & I can only describe my movements as similar to (only more laborious) those of a man recently blinded. 

Generally I was quite warm but a chilling at the wrists told me that a little water was entering once or twice my guide turned the cock in his helmet & also in mine from which the air escaped with a rush. During the whole time he kept hold of me for I had much difficulty in balancing myself except when moving forward the current might have something to do with this as I found I moved less slowly in one direction than in another. I soon got accustomed to seeing things around me but found my area of vision limiting to a few yards. I was quite at sea as to my bearings & literally had no idea where I was. It was not the intention of my guide that I should remain on blasted ground so we groped our way lower & then what sightings I saw looking into a gully filled with waving seaweed. All about were lovely colored Sponges some of them had valves at their orifices and closed when anything came near them - Purple boltinias stood up like mushrooms. Perhaps the most beautiful of all were the nudibranchs gliding through the water with delicate motions I saw many fish they swam about us & between our legs without fear, What astonished me was that I could not name them & it was some time before I grasped the situation, here were fish about a foot long whose form & markings seemed quite familiar, then came a most gigantic fish like Enoplosus armatus & I realised that everything was being magnified - then names began to come. One I had puzzled over was I recognised none other than the little Fortescue - Gentropus australis. Chaetodon strigatus was very common seen from

above they appeared to be mere dark streaks that when they came on a level with my

windows their true form was seen - The fish appeared to be as little capable of rapid or

sudden motion as ourselves and all movement was carried on in a slow & majestic manner. 

I found it was more difficult to locate an object that it is above water with one eye shut & I

could only approach anything by gradually feeling my distance. After I had been down a little time & before we had got far I became conscious of other figures gliding near us, an arm was slowly outstretched & I recognised the long fingers of Hedley, slowly I got myself turned round & we shook hands & exchanged visual greetings through our windows, then the figures moved upwards & I noticed some legs gliding up but as I could not get turned to face them quick enough nor see far towards the perpendicular I lost sight of them soon. Then my conductor led me deeper & deeper & like Dante I saw more wonders my arm was gripped & I saw the iron rod Cameron carried advanced towards an object in the sand. A stroke was made & a Cat fish speared its wriggles were of the same measured nature & on being released it moved towards the surface I thought. In the interest of things around me I had lost all thought of keeping near the position of our descent and placed myself unhesitatingly in the hands of my able guide. 

At intervals he would stop & as soon as I got my balance he would leave me alone draw out his slate & write "How do you feel" By way of answer I would give a nod but my headpiece being a fixture I had to nod my whole body & that in a most deliberate manner, I could see him smile &being satisfied that I was all right would put up his slate. My collecting instincts surged on me and going through a pantomimic description signified that I wanted the slate I wrote "I want to take something up" Then I had an Experience of collecting beneath the sea at best even to the Experience this was a slow process. Generally we had almost to lie down before we could get anything & gradually amassed together some sponges & other things I was sometime fumbling for a pocket which I supposed I had on back side. My guide however got me turned round & made me under stand that I had but one & that on my right side. I saw very few shells & these mostly empty. Dark colored Aplysias crawled about the rocks & on being disturbed ejected their protecting liquid which purpled the water for some distance around. Every valley & ridge we traversed unfolded new scenes more beautiful & delicate than anything I had seen & were

emphatic denials of the common expression that every thing of beauty is to gladden the

heart of man & exists for no other purpose. Such sights are well calculated to make us realise that we are but one of the numerous animals peopling the earth & ought to knock the conceit out of some of us. I found that by pressing my arms to my side I side I forced the air upwards & more escaped by the valve. 

After we had glided up hill & down hill for a considerable time my conductor wrote "would you like to go up" I gave another body nod. I saw him busy with the ropes & he led me up rising ground for some way & then tugged our ropes without exactly knowing how I was conscious of the ground receding below me, the water got lighter &[and] brighter - I perceived the foot of the ladder & with the assistance of my conductor got on to the lowest step. As soon as I got my head above water I was painfully conscious of the weight under which I was moving I paused a moment or two while my face glass was unscrewed the air pump was stopped & I was assisted

on to deck, placed on one of the seats glad enough to remain quiet while the armour was removed, a little water had got in at the wrists but it was inconsiderable otherwise I was

quite dry. When I was disrobed I began to take an interest in things above ground once

more. On asking where Hedley was I was referred to his bubbles a long distance out &

expressing astonishment that he had gone so far was more astonished when I was told

that I had been out much further, had been down 45 feet and ¾ of an hour. I should

have guessed 20 minutes. It appeared that Hedley had taken in water so copiously that he

had to ascend & be bailed - out hence my seeing him vanish upwards. He had however

again gone down but soon returned after me. Found my hands stinging & nettle like

marks probably due to grasping polyps & sponge spinules. My shoulders ached & were

quite bruised with the weight I had borne. This experience i.e. that of walking at the bottom of the sea is I can confidently say is the most marvellous of anything I have before undergone. 

What a magical experience for Waite to see first-hand the world he studied from the surface.

I'd love to know more about Cameron the diver - searches tell me his name was Robert Cameron. It's certainly solvable - for example this article in the Clarence and Richmond Examiner for Sat 9 Jan 1909 incudes information from 'Inspector Cameron' who had been in the 'Works Department' as a diver in his capacity as engineer: