FISH AND FISHERIES. 49 



it is quite valueless. It is very often brought in when fisherman are 

 trying to net prawns for bait. It will take a small prawn bait itself, 

 and thus becomes a great annoyance to those who are angling for Perch 

 (Lates), as it is very numerous. Its sting is most frequently felt by 

 bathers, who tread upon it as it lies on the bottom amongst the weeds. 

 The blacks held it in great dread, and the name of Bull-rout may possibly 

 be a corruption of some native word. The venom is probably a mucus 

 secreted by the skin, and not connected with any distinct poison gland. 



In Port Jackson there are other species of the family, and other 

 Centropogoiis which need not be enumerated here. Pentaroge is, how- 

 ever, a genus which merits a passing notice. It has no scales and has 

 strong spines on the preoperculum and preorbital dorsal fin, with twelve 

 or thirteen spines, anal with three. No pectoral appendages ; viliform 

 teeth on jaws, vomer and palatine ; air-bladder small ; pyloric appendages 

 in moderate number ; a cleft behind the fourth gill. 



The Fortescue. 



The " Fortescue " (P. marmorata, Cuv. and Val.) is a common fish 

 in Port Jackson, with a very long dagger-shaped preorbital spine, cleft 

 of the mouth slightly oblique, and a dorsal fin which begins on the neck. 

 The colour is a dirty yellowish, largely marbled with brown. The author 

 when fishing once saw a man wounded in the hand by the spine of this 

 fish, and for an hour or two sufiered intense pain, but no worse conse- 

 quences followed. Of this fish, Mr. Hill says : " The scorpion or Fortes- 

 cue, as these fish are popularly termed by fishermen, have been known for 

 a long time, and bear that name no doubt in memory of the pain they 

 have hitherto inflicted ; and for its number and array of prickles it 

 enjoys in this country the alias 'Forty skewer' or ' Fortescure.' These 

 are net fishes, and the moment they are captured they set up their thorns 

 and remain rigid, only waiting for some one to handle them. 



The thorns with which it is armed cover nearly all the fish when in 

 this state, and one is exposed at every touch. These are small fishes, 

 and weigh but a few ounces, and at night fishing they often get rolled up 

 in the net which when being hauled in bears some pulling to get it 

 ashore. They are easily distinguished from Centropogon as they have 

 no scales, but in other respects the Fortescue is very like the Bull-rout. 



"We were out fishing one night with a net towaixls Chowder, a bay in 

 this harbour, and were accompanied by a blackfellow named Wallace. 

 He got hold of one of these fishes, which was in the net rolled up, and he 

 had put his whole force and pressure upon that spot. I never saw any 

 one in such pain for a short time. He rolled on the beach, then got up 

 and ran about like mad. I was necessitated to give him at intervals all 

 the gi'og that we had, and which consisted of nearly a quart of strong 

 spirits. This was scarce enough to cause the pain to leave, but it had 

 the eflfect of deadening it, and in a couple of hours we were enabled to 

 remove him to his camp, when a good sleep and the effects of the grog 

 put him right again. Strong ammonia is the best thing which can be 

 applied to these parts Avhen stung with a fish-bone." 



