THE DEVIL-FISH AND ITS RELATIVES. 



349 



self saw one, which measured three feet in length by five or six inches 

 in width, sqeeze or mn itself through a crevice not over half aii inch 

 in width ! 



I should have mentioned that if it is desired to preserve the octopus 

 alive, the pressure on the neck should not be too severe, for that is their 

 vulnerable point ; and a person attacked by one should never lose time 

 in striving to loosen its arms, but grasp if possible this portion connect- 

 ing the head and body, in which way they may be easily killed. 



In regard to their powers of locomotion upon land, on which there 

 has been considerable controversy, I can assure the reader that I have 

 seen a full-grown octopus at the Bermudas spring up out of the water, 

 only a few feet forward of the boat I was in, and run up a perpendicular 

 rocky cliff for more than two hundred feet ! This ledge of rock bore a 

 general resemblance to our Hudson River Palisades at their steepest 

 portion. We soon learned the cause of this seemingly strange perform- 

 ance, when we discovered one of those beautiful bright-red crabs, which 

 are native to the locality, trying to escape from the clutches of this 

 devil-fish. The crab, being frightened almost out of its simple wits, 

 had run up the rocks for safety ; but its tactics proved sure death in 

 the end. As to the speed of the octopus, it appeared tome to travel 

 much faster than I could run. At least, 1 should not care, if unarmed, 

 to engage in a race with one, unless Mr. Devil started a good way 

 ahead. 



In this case I soon came into closer acquaintance with our agile 

 friend, for the next morning 'I had the satisfaction of discovering that 

 he had walked into our trap, which 

 had carefully placed near his 



we 



cave ; and now that we could see 

 him face to face, we found that his 

 strength was enormous as compared 

 with his moderate size. Being placed 

 in a bucket of water, such as is usual- 

 ly found on a ship's deck, he attached 

 his eio'ht arms to the bottom and sides, 

 by means of his powerful and perfect- 

 working suction-disks, so firmly, that 

 I several times lifted the bucket, 

 water and all, by taking hold of the 

 animal's body, and twirled it over my 

 head. The more I twirled the more 



firralv it stuck. An octopus will not Fig. 4.— Peaelt Nautitits {mmtilm pom- 

 •' , . „ iJiwws), showing chambers inside of Bhell. 



relax its hold "on compulsion, any 



more than Falstaff would " give reasons." It is as self-willed as some 



human animals. 



According to scientific classification, the octopus belongs to the 



division of soft-bodied Mollusca, and the class of Cephalopoda — mean- 



