268 MEMOIRS OF THE CARNEGIE MUSEUM. 



so-called young of the Sorubim were the little fishes which I have had the honor of exhibiting to 

 the Society. The whole matter became more involved and enigmatical to me, because it appeared 

 that the fisherman, if he had been really guilty of an intended fraud, had for this purpose made 

 use of a fisli which was so rare that I had never found it, although I had collected great quantities 

 of the various small fishes in the waters around Lagoa Santa; in fact a fish which I was forced to 

 conclude to be as difficult to obtain as the real young of the Soru])im. In 1854, when I again 

 visited Brazil, the solution of the riddle was one of my especial aims. Soon after I arrived at 

 Lagoa Santa in the latter part of November I indeed reached the solution much more quickly 

 than I had expected, and in the following manner: 



A person from the vicinity of Lagoa Santa, liut not the same one, who almost three years 

 before had brought me the first Stegophilus, came to the village on a Sunday in the middle of 

 December to attend mass according to the custom of the country. Ho brought with him on this 

 occasion a Sorul)im, which before he went to church he sold to a Frenchman who had a shop in 

 the town. When mass was over he returned to get hi.s pay, and watched the shopkeeper cut the 

 fish into pieces. He remarked that when the fish had been pulled out of the water there had been 

 five young in its mouth, of which two had remained inside. The shopkeeper looked and actually 

 found the remaining "young," and was kind enough, as he knew the matter would interest me, 

 to immediately bring them to me and relate the circumstances. 



At the very first glance at the so-called "young" I saw to my surprise that again Stegophili 

 had been brought me as the young of the Sorubim. That deception shoidd again be at the bottom 

 of the matter appeared in the highest degree improliable. It could hardly be thought of, except 

 upon the assumption that the person who had .sold the last Sorubim was in collusion with the 

 fisherman who during my jirevious stay, three years before, had brought me the first two Steg- 

 '0])hili. How could it be explained that both had conceived the idea of passing off the very same 

 fish as the young of the Sorubim, and that a fish, which has no particular resemblance to the latter? 

 But, even if there had been collusion, would it not have been more likely that the first party con- 

 cerned would have come directly to me with his "Sorubim young," instead of leaving it to be more 

 or less of a chance whether or not they should fall into my hands? Even if a trick, prearranged 

 to allay a possible suspicion, were thinkable, nevertheless it was hard to believe that under the 

 existing conditions the parties involved would have taken the time and the trouble to deceive me, 

 unless they had expected to reap advantage from their efi'ort. If a trick had been planned in the 

 present case it was entirely aimless, as no pay was either asked, or given, for these last "young 

 Sorubim " ; and neither the last person, nor any one else, came at a later date to offer me " Soru])im 

 young." There was therefore left for me no other alternative than to conclude that I had been 

 unjust in my suspicion in the case of the fisherman who on the occasion of my previous stay had 

 brought me the first Stegophili. In other words, this little fish in reality passes into and abides 

 in the gill-cavities of the Sorubim. Its presence there has through an easily explained mis- 

 interpretation on the part of the common people given rise in Minas to the story about the 

 Sorubim 's care for its young. 



The second species, Branchioica berlomi, known to inhabit the gill-cavities of 

 larger fishes, is recorded in the present volume. It really belongs to the Vanddliina'. 

 One specimen was sent me several years ago by Sh. A. de W. Bertoni from Puerto 



