28 Fanciful Ideas for a Museum of Shells, 



shells of the iSpondylus {spondylos, the prickly head of an 

 artichoke ; form), or thorny oyster (fg. 6. g), which seems to 

 present a prickle every way; while those of the scallop {fg. 

 6.h), the muscle {fg» 6. ii), the Solen {solen, sl tube ; resem- 

 blance, when the shells are closed), or razor-sheath {fg, 6. k), 

 and the cockle (fg, 6. 1), might very well denote those per- 

 sons whom one meets with in society every day, and who are 

 so tremblingly alive to little matters which regard precedence 

 and respect : for naturalists inform us that the scallop, which 

 moves on whichever side it likes, by a species of jerk, ought to 

 be considered as of a higher rank than the muscle, which 

 moves slowly in a groove ; but that this latter must also take 

 precedence of the *SV)len and the cockle,the first of which can 

 only move up and down in a hole, and the last of which, hav- 

 ing no motion of its own, can only go wheresoever the tide 

 may waft it. For the glutton we can boast the whole genus 

 Patella {patella, a little dish; shape of the shell) (^g. 7. a), 



7 I ..^^.g 



a. Patella." g, Persian crown. 



b. B611a amp611a. A, Lituus. 



c. Sea Hams. i, Mitra episcopMis. 



d. Melon. k, 2Va1itUus. 



e e, Olives! /, Argona6ta. 



/, Papal Crown. m. Section of the ^a6tilus. 



and the Bulla ampulla {ampulla, a bottle) {fg, 7. b) ; besides 

 sea hams {fg, 7. c), melons {fg. 7. d), olives {fg. 7. e e), &c. 

 ,&c. And it will increase your admiration of our riches in 

 the world of shells, to find that we have yet in store crowns, 

 both papal {fg. 7.f) and Persian {fg. I.g) for the ambitious ; 

 and for church dignitaries the Lituus {fg. 7. h), or crozier, 

 and the Mitra episcopalis. {fg, 7. ?.) The Nautilus {naus, 

 a ship ; floats on the surface of the sea) {fg. 7. k) and Argo- 

 nauta {argonautes, the companions of Jason, in the celebrated 

 ship Argo, were so called) {fg. 7. 1) have an obvious reference 

 to heroes of the main ; the former, besides that, should serve 

 me for another portraiture, virtue nobly struggling with mis- 



