ITS DISEASE. 188 



described. I think I have observed that the afternoon 

 is a favourite season for these exercises ; not, how- 

 ever, that it adheres with any regularity to time. 



June 2Srd. — I have had my little Pipe-fish now 

 nearly three weeks. The terminal portion of the tail, 

 that I mentioned above as abruptly attenuated, flat- 

 tened, and smooth, has grown considerably : it was at 

 first not quite half-an-inch in length, it is now nearly 

 an inch : the appearance is exactly like that of a 

 renewed tail, like that of a Lizard for instance. But 

 there is another change in my little captive, that is 

 less pleasing. The bladder-like tamour beneath the 

 throat has increased, and spread, so that above, on the 

 sides, and below, all about the body, the fish is nearly 

 covered with large patches of bladders, many of them 

 contiguous to each other, evidently filled with water 

 or air. It is probably air ; for the eff'ect is to float 

 the fish on the surface ; and it is only by muscular 

 energy in swimming that it can get down again 

 when once at the top ; and when among the weeds 

 it is fain to take hold with its prehensile tail to keep 

 itself there. It is evidently a disease ; analogous, one 

 might say, considering the difi'erence of the elements 

 in which we respectively live, to the dropsy among 

 ourselves. I endeavoured to tap some of the largest 

 bladders with a needle, and fancied it felt some relief ; 

 but I was afraid to attempt much at this kind of 

 chirurgery, lest I might be found guilty by a jury of 

 fishes of the crime of fish-slaughter. What little I 

 did, however, seemed to do good, for the next day 

 many of the bladders had disappeared, but only to 

 return in greater numbers and size than ever. The 



