TUNNY. 91 



net was shot across the course of the fish, and as each of 

 the four or five boats came to the place their nets were 

 joined to the former, so as to surround and enclose them as 

 in a pond, within which these fishes now remained confounded 

 and helpless, without attempting to move. It appears that in 

 this condition it was not difficult to warp them by the help 

 of ropes to the land. The remarks before referred to, as 

 illustrative of the same subject, are given in the following 

 letters: — 



"I enclose, for your perusal, an account of the sean, which 

 I find placed in a copy of JEschylus, among the notes on the 

 Tunny fishery, "iEschyli Persae," v. 430. The poet there 

 describes the Greeks as knocking the Persians on the head 

 with pieces of the battered ships, as they floundered about in 

 the water, their ships being sunk or battered to pieces, — as 

 they would so many Tunnies enclosed in a sean. In the 

 notes on the Avoid Tunnies, the editor takes occasion to 

 mention the manner in which the fish were enclosed under 

 the direction of a huer, (©vyyccncoTrop,) who ascended a pro- 

 montory for the purpose, exactly as our Pilchard huer does; 

 and he quotes passages from Theocritus and from Aristophanes 

 and other authors in illustration. — See Bloomfield's "vEschylus, 

 — Persae," notes, L. 430. He thinks that ^Eschylus was fond 

 of the sport. I will venture a remark, and act the annotator. 

 It appears to me that the Greeks were not acquainted with 

 the tuck-net: they dragged the net to the shore, and then 

 knocked the Thunnies on the head, which were splashing 

 about and endeavouring to escape. This would appear from 

 the passage above quoted. The Afi^i/BX^arpov was a simple 

 casting-net. The Scriptures partty prove my remark, — 'Like 

 unto a net (^ayrjvrj — a sean,) which, when it was full, they 

 drew to the shore.' — Mathew, xiii, 47." (I here beg to 

 observe that the Scriptures more than partly prove the remark, 

 for they make a clear distinction between two nets that were 

 used on the Lake of Galilee by the Apostles. In chapter iv, 

 verse 18, Peter and Andrew are described as fiaXkov^as 

 a/j,<j)i(3\r}<TTpov — throwing a casting-net or amphibleestron into the 

 sea, for they were skilful in the use of it, being professed 

 fishermen; but in chapter xiii, 47, the action of the Xciyrjv^, 

 or sean, is differently described as <rvva<ya<youcni GKirav^os yevovi 



