LONGEVITY OF FISHES. 233 



the last and least an exploratory eel ! A gentleman of this town, 

 when in America, was strolling among the meadows on the banks 

 of the Hudson. It was in autumn, and some labourers were em- 

 ployed in deepening a perfectly dry and grassy ditch, they had a 

 hamper into which they, ever and anon, threw a live eel, which 

 they disinterred from an alluvial grave, some two feet below the 

 dry bottom of the ditch. These meadows are occasionally inun- 

 dated in winter, and the exploring propensities of the eels induce 

 them to quit the river and range over the inundated meadows ; the 

 waters retire to the river, and some of the eels retire to these drains 

 which, in their turn, become dry; they then burrow into the soft 

 mud, and finally are enclosed in a firm soil, alive, and perfectly 

 fat, here they remain till the plains are again inundated, a resur- 

 rection takes place, and they either repeat the same round or return 

 to the mighty Hudson. 



The commander of an English cruizer, lately returning from 

 St. Ubes, presented the writer of this article with a glass globe, 

 containing some fine gold fish, which he received from an English 

 naval officer in the service of Portugal. One of these fishes, 

 being more remarkable for its beauty than its size, (4 inches long) 

 when in an English man of war, received the name of *• Lady 

 Abbess" from the seamen in consequence of its having been with- 

 drawn from a fishpond in the garden of a convent of nuns, at 

 St. Ubes. 



To one of those singular rencontres (which by the bye happen 

 every day) the writer is indebted for some particulars relative to 

 the natural history of this fish. Being a casual passenger on 

 board a steam vessel on tlie coast of Scotland, he entered into 

 conversation with a stranger walking the deck : the conversation 

 turned on the civil wars in i^ortugal, now happily concluded, the 

 stranger appeared to be well informed on these matters. He had 

 been employed in defending St. Ubes when attacked by the Mi- 

 guelites, was a post captain in the service of the Queen, and 

 commanded the Duchesse de Braganza. " Pray did you afford 

 protection to a convent of nuns, at St. Ubes ?" " Yes, we removed 

 the whole sisterhood to a place of safety, and were rewarded by 

 their grateful thanks and sincere benedictions ; but the poor old 

 superieure quitted the convent with great regret : she had been 

 many years within its walla and was attached to every thing about 

 it; her favorite parrot and cat (elderly maiden ladies must bestow 

 their affections on something!) were carefully removed, but no- 

 thing greived her so much as leaving behind some fine gold fish, 

 VOL. IV.— 1833. FF 



