PREFACE. XI 



eel — the teeth of the gilthead, bream, and throat-teeth 

 of the carp, bream, &c. — the anchor of the himp- 

 sucker and remora — the colouring of the perch and 

 bleak — the icthyoj)hagous teeth of the pike, shark, and 

 silvery hairtail— -the tail of the fox shark— the pre- 

 hensile lips of the dory and sprat---the nose of the 

 barbel and dog-fish — the resplendence of the Arctic 

 gymnetrus and scabbard-fish — the dagger in the tail of 

 the sting ray— the nest of the stickleback — the armour 

 plates of the sturgeon — the nostril, breathing powers, 

 and store of fat in the salmon-^-migrations of the sal- 

 mon, herring, pilchard, sprat, and mackerel, &c. — and, 

 above all, the enormous fertility of fishes useful as 

 food to the human race.'-' 



I am satisfied that I should obtain a verdict in favour 

 of my view of the case, namely, that in all these wonder- 

 ful contrivances, there exists evidence of design and fore- 

 thought and a wondrous adaptation of means to an end. 

 A full acknowledgment must necessarily follow that 

 these were due to the immediate creation of " The 

 Lord and Giver of life." 



This is a school open to all ; there is never any 

 lack of subjects, no fees to pay ; all that is required 

 is a sharp knife, sharp scissors, and painstaking obser- 

 vation ; while the mind will reap its reward in the 

 pleasures of original investigation. 



I trust that these observations may lead many of 

 my fellow countrymen to see how far inferior the so- 

 called works of human art are to the works of Creation ; 

 and, finally, let me assure them that they will find in the 

 structure of animals — whether living in the waters or 



* Note. — The aboTe points are mentioued in this book, see 

 Index. 



