THE OPELET. 
165 
by their own weight. At other times it rises to the very 
water’s edge, and even thrusts out its base in an inverted 
position upon tlie surface of the water, as if it would float 
by the mere contact of the dry base with the air, just as the 
Limnece and many other Mollusca do. And not seldom 
does it boldly break the tie that connects it Avith the side 
of the vessel, and actually swim, or at least passively float, 
with its base in contact with the inferior surface of the 
I 
superincumbent stratum of air. A little shaking of the 
vessel, however, causes the water to overfloAv the frail boat, 
which had been hitherto dry, when the animal instantly 
falls prone to the bottom. 
No very special care is required to maintain the health 
and vigour of the Opelet in captivity : as to situation, it 
will select for itself the position its Avayward Avill may most 
fancy ; and if the water be kept in purity, the lovely crea- 
ture will survive an indefinite period. It needs to be fed 
at frequent intervals, or it Avill droop and die ; for it is one 
of the most voracious of its class. Nothing in the Avay of 
flesh or fish comes amiss to it : a day or tAvo ago I had an 
instructive example of its gluttony. I had just dropped 
tAVO large ones of the variety Smarafjdina into my col- 
lecting-jar, Avhen I succeeded in capturing a young Conger 
Eel, about six inches in length and half an inch in thick- 
ness. I Avish that the sciolists who deny a poisoning 
power to tlie organs of the Actinioids had seen the' result 
of the introduction of the lithe and vigorous fish to the 
expectant Anthece. Before it could reach the bottom of the 
jar, the green tentacles of one of the Opelets had entAvincd 
themselves around its head, and, AAu-apping the wretch 
around as if Avith a cloth, almost in an instant had dragged 
it to the cavernous mouth, in Avhich it Avas partially 
engulphed. My little son, Asrho Avas with me, begged for 
the life of the fish ; and 1 drcAV it by force from the green 
