THE FEELERS OF THE BARBED MULLET 



being brought to the markets; efforts were even made 

 to keep the fish alive in large tubs. The wealthy, at 

 their villas near the sea, had cleverly contrived tanks of 

 vast extent, in which were kept the fish that could live 

 in captivity, murry and other eels, sea bream, and others. 

 The most highly esteemed was the red mullet, whose 

 scientific name Mullus comes from the adjective mulleus, 

 meaning red in colour. What men liked about it was 

 not only the goodness and succulence of the flesh, of 

 which connoisseurs of our own time also think highly, 

 but the variety and splendour of its colours, especially 

 at the moment of dying. 



In special banquets, a vessel full of sea water in 

 which mullet just taken from the tank were swimming 

 about, was placed on the table before the guests, 

 resting idly on their cushions. Then the water was 

 taken away, or perhaps replaced by a little milk, so 

 that the fish died of suffocation by slow degrees. 

 During the few minutes of their struggles, as they 

 leaped and tossed about, the empurpled hues of their 

 bodies brightened or went dull, disappeared on one 

 side or grew stronger on another, glittered with every 

 kind of iridescence and sparkled with the play of the 

 light. Those present began by amusing themselves 

 with this feast for the eyes. When the mullet were 

 dead, inert and pale, they were sent to the kitchen, 

 whence they were brought back a few moments later, 

 carefully cooked and cleverly served, ready to delight 

 the palate after having charmed the eye. 



To us this seems an outrageous gastronomic ex- 

 travagance. Like the ancient Romans we take pleasure 

 in a good table and good service, but we do not 

 try to combine sensations of so divergent a nature. 

 We prefer to take things individually, the better to 

 appreciate them. We have our fishes to look at, of 

 which we think highly because of the beauty of their 

 colouring; and we have fish to eat, in which we only 

 desire delicacy of flesh. We enjoy the mullet when they 



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