THE FISH OF BOUILLABAISSE 



is not so common. It is a method of fishing par- 

 ticularly interesting to the naturalist; it enables him 

 to secure all sorts and conditions of material for study 

 in the net which is brought up from the sea bottom. 

 There is always something of interest to him. I 

 remember the things which happened almost as clearly 

 as if it were yesterday. I remember the strong boat, 

 its brown hull, its yellow deck and thwarts, its big 

 white triangular sail. I see the fishermen, Armand 

 the skipper, with sturdy, energetic face, grey bristling 

 moustache, and strong, thick-set figure. A Marseillais 

 of an old family, descended from generation after 

 generation of " gangui " fishermen, he was passionately 

 devoted to a job which he knew from A to Z. I see, 

 too, his sailor, Narcisse, known as " the Neapolitan " 

 from the place of his origin, untidy, big-bellied, 

 obliging, active when activity was called for and slack 

 the rest of the time, his head carefully shaved. With 

 his arched nose, nut-cracker chin, and round eyes, he 

 had a most extraordinarily merry face, just like Punch's. 



It took the whole day. We set out at dawn, almost 

 before it was light. At this early hour, with a gentle 

 land breeze, we set sail and slowly made our way out 

 of the harbour into the gulf. Frequently there was 

 an almost diaphanous low mist lying over the water, 

 which softened the distances but accentuated things 

 that were quite close; the sea seemed more trans- 

 parent and more limpid close to the shore. Then the 

 sun came out. As it rose higher in the sky, it dissipated 

 the mist; daylight spread over the sea; the land breeze 

 weakened and finally fell, and we came to the islands 

 Pomegue and Ratonneau, which stand out in the 

 middle of the gulf like outer guardians of the harbour. 

 Between the limestone cliffs we sought a cove, a little 

 sheltered creek, a " calanque ", to use the local word, 

 where we might wait until the time arrived to begin 

 our fishing. 



We had not to wait long. There was a short period 

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