Section 44
At Sea
Throughout history, people have left the land and taken to the sea.
This has been done to catch food by fishing or to visit other lands.
Boats and ships have been used for this purpose.
The first boats were made of wood, as many are still today.
Paddles were first used to propel the boats and then sails were used.
Eventually, more sails were added to give speed to the ships and boats.
Later, coal was used to create steam driven engines.
Today, most ships or boats use oil based fuels.
There are rules and laws at sea, called maritime law.
Thieves at sea are called pirates, they break the maritime laws.
All sailors know to respect the sea as it can be a very dangerous place.
Perhaps drowning is one of the most feared forms of dying.
The sea bed is littered with thousands of years of shipping that sunk.
Nowadays, some people dive for the treasures that sunken ships may hold.
The fated ship, Titanic, has recently been one such ship, that has reviewed its sunken treasures.