THE TRIGGER-FISH 



broad plates of bone firmly jointed. Under the belly, 

 the plates are larger and thicker than those on the 

 sides and back, and form a shield which gives the 

 final touch to the whole outfit. The bones, all along 

 the body, have projecting spines. There is an extra- 

 ordinary resemblance to the old Japanese armour which 

 was made of carved and interlocked pieces. This, 

 however, hardly compares as regards finish with the 

 natural armour which surrounds the mailed gurnard. 

 As a protection it could hardly be beaten : everything is 

 perfect, the strength of the cuirass, arid the bristling 

 array of spines or spurs. 



Yet, in spite of all this elaborate protective armament, 

 the creature retains to a very large extent the mode of 

 life customary in the majority of fishes. Near it we 

 find other species which have no armour at all and do 

 not seem to miss it. The armour, although it definitely 

 serves as a protection, is not an obtrusive factor in the 

 creature's existence; its appearance is more impressive 

 than the use made of it. Moreover, this same appear- 

 ance prevents us from taking it too seriously. We 

 note a contrast in this respect between the trigger-fish 

 and the mailed gurnard. The former, dark coloured, 

 with spurs upon its dorsal fin, really looks like a warrior 

 in full array, with his daggers ready for action either 

 in attack or defence. The mailed gurnard, on the other 

 hand, with its delicate shades of colour, red on the back, 

 paler red on the sides, and faint pink on the belly, 

 seems to belong to another and gentler type, strictly 

 defensive, and concealing its defensive weapons by 

 bright coloration. 



We often credit Nature with motives like our own, 

 which originate in our own minds, and these, by a 

 process of projection, we proceed to attribute to her. 

 To assure our own safety we need arms and pro- 

 tections and, when we discover in certain animals the 

 presence of weapons like those to which we are 

 accustomed, we conclude that they are in the same 

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