these splendid ornaments. The purple of the iris,' the richness of the rose, the azure blue of the sky, the darkest velvet black, and many other hues, are seen commingled with metallic lustre over the pearly surface of this resplendent group, which, habitually frequenting the rocky shores at no great depth of water, are seen to sport in the sunbeams, as if to exhibit to advantage their gorgeous dress.

6. "Several of the genera," farther remarks this writer, "are moreover

rostris.

distinguished by an extraordinary habit of shooting their prey by projecting a liquid stream from their mouths. Thus the genus Chelmon contains a species six or eight inches in length, which, when it perceives a fly, or other winged insect, hovering near it, or settled on a twig, propels against it, with considerable force, a drop of liquid from its mouth, so as to drive it into the water.

7. "In attacking an insect at rest, it usually approaches cautiously, and very deliberately takes its aim. It is said to be an amusement with the Chinese in Java to keep this fish in confinement in a large vessel of water, that they may witness its dexterity. They fasten a fly, or other insect, to the side of the vessel, when the chelmon aims at it with such precision that it rarely misses its mark. The archer, again, belonging to another genus of this family, shoots his watery deluge to the height of three or four feet, and strikes almost without fail the insect at which it aims."

8. Although most fish soon die when taken out of their native element, yet some species are known to make their way over land from one piece of water to another; and, stranger still, there is one kind, a native of India, about the size and figure of a perch, and usually called the climbing perch, which has been known to climb bushes of considerable height. This it does by the aid of its long ventral fins, which it uses as feet. These fish are enabled to retain sufficient moisture to keep their gills moist and open for a considerable time; and it is well known that it is not the abundance of air, but the want of it, which kills fish when taken out of the water.

9. The Mackerel family, the most numerous of the bony fishes after the perches, includes more than three hundred species, mostly marine fish, crowding the surface of the ocean, especially in warm latitudes, and having an extensive range. Amid great diversities of size and form, extending from the little mackerel to the monster sword-fish, the numerous members of this family possess certain characters, such as very minute scales, and gill-covers without spines or notches, which give to the whole a family resemblance that is not easily mis

taken. The common mackerel is not only beautiful in form, but also, when seen in its native element, brilliant in coloring. (See cut, Fig. 8, p. 232.)

10. This family is one of the most useful to man, many of the species constituting excellent food, their size being considerable, and their reproduction enormous; and as they are brought periodically, by a wise provision of the Creator, from the depths of the ocean to shallow waters to deposit their eggs or spawn, they become the objects of highly valuable and inexhaustible fisheries. If the mackerel were dispersed over the immense surface of the deep, no effective fishery could be carried on; but, approaching the shore as they do from all directions, and roving along the coasts in immense shoals, millions are caught, which yet form a small portion compared with the myriads which escape.

11. The common tunny,* a large fish of the Mackerel family, often measuring ten or twelve feet in length, and sometimes weighing over a thousand pounds, is occasionally brought into the New York markets; but in the Mediterranean Sea the smaller species of this fish swarm at certain seasons of the year, and are taken in immense numbers. A favorite time for catching them seems to have been at the full of the moon, when, allured by the silvery light, they glide in great bands over the surface of the water. An ancient Greek poet thus alludes to their capture at this season:

"The nets have been thrown, and on careless fin

The moonlit tunnies will soon rush in."

The striped tunny, a smaller fish, is well known in Southern seas, where in great troops it pursues the flying-fish over the vast waters, as herds of wolves do the bison on our Western prairies.

12. The sword-fish, another member of the great Mackerel family, usually measuring from eight or ten to eighteen feet in length, is an occasional frequenter of our waters. In 1840 the New York markets were abundantly supplied with this fish, whose flesh is preferred to halibut or sturgeon, which in flavor it somewhat resembles. The most striking feature in this fish is its long, sword-like muzzle, with finely-toothed edges, a powerful instrument which threatens every thing that approaches it. More than two thousand years ago the poet Sophocles thus alluded to it:

† See the representation of this fish (Xiphias gladius), page 237.

The sword-fish is reported to have violent contests with the whale, of which the following, quoted from a reliable work, is a striking example:

13. "One morning, as stated by the captain of an English vessel, during a calm, when near the Western Isles of Scotland, all hands were called up at three in the morning to witness a battle between several fish called thrashers, or fox-sharks, and some sword-fish on the one side, and an enormous whale on the other. It was in the middle of summer, and the weather being clear, and the fish close to the vessel, we had a fine opportunity of witnessing the contest.

66

14. As soon as the whale's back appeared above the surface, the thrashers, springing several yards into the air, descended with great violence upon the object of their rancor, and inflicted upon him the most severe slaps with their tails, the sounds of which resembled the reports of muskets fired at a distance. The sword-fish, in their turn, attacked the distressed whale, stabbing from beneath, so that the water to a great distance around was dyed with blood. In this manner they continued tormenting and wounding him for many hours, until we lost sight of him; and I have no doubt that in the end they completed his destruction."

15. It is probably by mistaking a vessel for one of these great monsters of the deep that the sword-fish has been known to try his strength against a gallant ship. Those on board have sometimes, from the violence of the shock, found it dif ficult to believe that they had not struck some hidden rock, such being the weight and power of the fish; and specimens of ships' timbers penetrated by the sword of the fish, which is sometimes broken off and left in the wood, are not uncomThe poet Oppian describes this fish as attacking even rocks themselves:

mon.

"Struck by the blade, the sounding stone gives way,
And shatter'd rocks their secret veins display."

16. As the weapon of the sword-fish is very destructive to nets, the harpoon has always been a favorite method for capturing large specimens. Oppian further relates that the sailors of the Tyrrhine Sea constructed, with this view, certain light skiffs, built to resemble the sword-fish, which the latter, mistaking for so many new acquaintances of their own species, approach in foolish confidence, and thus are easily destroyed by the harpooners. We give the poet's narration, without, however, vouching for its truth.

17.

"To fishy forms th' artistic builders lend
Mimetics fins, and wooden sword protend.
With secret joy each xiphias views his friends,
And kindly instincts aid man's treacherous ends.
Anon the crafty boatmen, closing round,
The trident hurl, and deal the deadly wound.
The goaded fish, experience bought too late,
Escapes, but oft still battles hard with fate;
Unvanquish'd, summons to his instant aid
The oft-tried prowess of his trusty blade;

Selects some boat, and runs his powerful sword
Full many an inch within the fatal board:
There holds no more, the doughty 10 weapon yields,
And crimsons with his blood the briny fields."

1 I'-RIS, a plant of that name. See p. 187.
2 AR-TIF'-I-CER, a skillful workman.

6 PRO-TEND', stretch forth.

7 TRI-DENT, a spear with three prongs.

3 XIPH'-I-AS, the Latin name of the sword-8 GOAD-ED, pricked with the goad or spear. 4 RAN'-COR, inveterate enmity.

5 MI-MET-1€, imitative.

[fish. 9 PROW'-ESS, bravery; skillful valor.
10 DOUGH'-TY (dow'-ty), brave; illustrious.

LESSON V.-THE SPINE-RAYED FISHES CONTINUED.

1. Common Sword-fish, Xiphias gladius. 2. Indian Sword-fish, Histiophorus Indicus. 3. Common Tunny, Thynnis vulgaris. 4. Dolphin of the ancients, Coryphaena hippuris. 5. Scabbard-fish, Lepidopus argyreus. 6. Wolf-fish (a fighting character, belonging to the family of the Gobies), Anarrhichus lupus. 7. Fishing Frog, Lophius piscatorius.

1. THE several species of the Pilot-fish, of which so many curious stories have been told, also belong to the Mackerel family. The ancient naturalists asserted that the common pilot-fish, which is a pretty little fish about a foot in length, joins company with the tempest-toss'd bark of the anxious mariner, indicates to him his nearest course to land, and leaves him as soon as it has fulfilled this kind office.

2. Others, with much reason, deny this assertion, and allege that the pilot, like the shark, follows vessels for the purpose of obtaining a share of the garbage' which may be thrown

overboard. Certain, however, it is, that their perseverance in this respect is very singular, as is narrated in the case of an English vessel which was accompanied by two pilot-fish during its entire voyage of eighty days from Alexandria, in the Mediterranean, to Plymouth.

3. It is a current opinion among sailors that this fish acts a pilot's part to the shark, and accompanies and befriends it as opportunity offers; and certainly there is a great amount of evidence which goes to show that there is something very much like a confiding familiarity between these two companions of the weary mariner. Numerous well-authenticated cases like that which we quote from Cuvier, respecting the habits of this fish, might be given.

4. With the ancients, however, as described by their poets, this little fish was the faithful companion of the whale instead of the shark; and Oppian thus alludes to the services which these pigmy pilots render to their unwieldy associates:

"Bold in the front the little pilot glides,

Averts each danger, every motion guides;
With grateful joy the willing whales attend,
Observe the leader, and revere the friend.
Where'er the little guardian leads the way,
The bulky tyrants doubt not to obey,
Implicit trust repose in him alone,

And hear and see with senses not their own."

When, and on what grounds, the misunderstanding of the pilot with his "fat friend" took place, history fails to inform us ; but that he is now the ally of the dreaded shark, whom he escorts in safety through every sea, is matter of general notoriety and almost daily observation. The following is the extract from Cuvier :

5. "Captain Richards, of the Royal Navy, during his station in the Mediterranean, saw on a fine day a blue shark, which followed the ship. After a time a shark-hook, baited with pork, was flung out. The shark, attended by four pilot-fish, repeatedly approached the bait; and every time he did so, one of the pilots, which preceded him, was distinctly seen from the taffrail of the ship to run his snout against the side of the shark's head to turn it away.