THE SWAMPS OF THE MISSISSIPPI. 86 



soon explained, by observing the jaws of one of these animals projected from 

 the surface, and gobbling up a Duck, within a very short distance from me. 

 I watched for a repetition of such a piracy; and just as I caught him gaping, 

 I discharged a barrel right down his throat ; which I am quite sure, if it did 

 him no harm, did him no good. I have little doubt that some of the monstrous 

 Cat-fish in these swamps, practice the same thing; and this I am inclined to 

 believe, from their snatching at some birds in my hand, which I previously 

 mentioned. I was astonished, on one occasion, to find a frog make an 

 attempt to swallow a Bird called the Tyrant Fly-catcher, which I had shot. 

 It fell into a marsh, and scarcely had it reached the water when it was seized 

 and pulled underneath; the buoyancy, however, of the bird, of which he 

 had only swallowed a part, raised it to the surface. I immediately shot my 

 other barrel ; which resulted in wounding the frog, which swam to the other 

 side. Upon measurement of it afterwards, I found it to exceed sixteen 

 inches, measuring from the extended forelegs to the extremity of the hind 

 ones. I could mention other instances of equal voracity, and two in par- 

 ticular; one of a shark off the island of Porto Rico, which I fed with a 

 quantity of shavings tied up in an old handkerchief. I gave him something 

 else, besides the shavings, which he did not appear to relish so well. The 

 other Avas that of a shark, pursuing and attacking the canoe of a nigger boy, 

 called Isaac, while crossing a lagoon; it made two attempts, and in the last 

 one broke several of its teeth, which it left sticking in the side of the canoe, 

 one of which I afterwards extracted with my knife. 



(To he concluded in our next.J 



THE MYRTLE BEE, 



BY O. S. HOUND, ESQ. 



Under this title, there has been, as some of my readers may be probably 

 aware, a very extraordinaiy discussion of late, in the " Notes and Queries," 

 a periodical that deserves a more extended circulation than it has hitherto 

 obtained, relative to a bird unhnoivn to any British ornithologists. This 

 circvimstance was first mentioned to me by Mr. James Forbes, late of Sill- 

 wood, Sunnyhill, who, being acquainted with the gentleman from whom the 

 statement came, and who was also known personally to myself, I expressed 

 a wish to see him upon the subject ; and they both of them, viz., Mr. James 

 Forbes, and Captain Brown of Egham, came to my rooms on the 27th ult., 

 and I " had it out," and will give, as nearly as I can, what passed on that 

 occasion. Captain Brown I have known for many years, he is an old Penin- 

 sular officer, of the 50th, celebrated as a keen and successful sportsman, and 



