126 Beautiful Shells. 
tropical seas ; its scientific name is Argonauta argo. 
In the mythology, we read that Argo was the name 
of a ship that carried a certain Grecian named 
Jason, and a crew of argives, in search of adven- 
tures. Some say that the term is derived from a 
Greek word signifying swift. This party of mari- 
ners, said to be the first that ever sailed upon the 
sea, was called Argonauts, or, as it might be freely 
translated, seamen of the ship Argo. Nauticus, in 
Latin, signifies anything relating to ships or navi- 
gation, and here you have the whole origin of the 
name of this little Argonaut, about which we must 
sing you a song written by Mary Howitt before we 
proceed further :— 
“Who was the first sailor P tell me who can; 
Old father Neptune !—no, you’re wrong, 
There was another ere Neptune began; 
Who was he? tell me. Tightly and strong, 
Over the waters he went—he went, 
Over the waters he went! 
“Who was the first sailor P tell me who can; 
Old father Noah!—no, you’re wrong, 
There was another ere Noah began, 
Who was he? tell me. Tightly and strong, 
Over the waters he went—he went, 
Over the waters he went. 
