26 FISHES OF FANCY. 



is its deadliest enemy, for it pelts it with stones till it kills 

 it ; the serra races with ships, and, if it gets the worst of 

 it, cuts the vessels through with its fins and eats the crew, 

 but is not to be mistaken for the scylla, which is " faced 

 and handed lyke a gentylwoman, but it hath a wyde 

 mouth and ferfuU tethe ; " the way to escape the siren 

 when met with, is to throw her an empty barrel or two to 

 play with ; the sturgeon has no mouth, and grows fat on 

 east winds." 



Or take again the ' Old English Miscellany,' with its 

 account of the Cetegrande : — " It is the largest of all fish, 

 and looks like an island when afloat. When hungry, it 

 gapes, and out comes a sweet scent, by which numbers of 

 fishes are drawn into its mouth. 



" Moral : The Devil is like the Whale ; he tempts men 

 to follow their sinful lusts, and in return they find ruin." 



