﻿336 
  PROCEEDINGS 
  OF 
  THE 
  CALIFORNIA 
  

  

  oughly 
  stunned 
  about 
  twenfy-five 
  or 
  thirty 
  minutes; 
  then, 
  reviving, 
  would 
  die 
  

   from 
  asphyxia, 
  in 
  a 
  similar 
  manner 
  as 
  if 
  caught 
  with 
  hook 
  and 
  line. 
  Many 
  cu- 
  

   rious 
  varieties 
  of 
  the 
  smaller 
  fish, 
  many 
  of 
  them 
  of 
  brilliant 
  color, 
  that 
  live 
  

   around 
  the 
  kelp 
  stems, 
  would 
  be 
  secured 
  by 
  the 
  explosion. 
  These, 
  I 
  do 
  not 
  

   think 
  could 
  be 
  taken 
  in 
  any 
  other 
  way. 
  The 
  kelp 
  would 
  interfere 
  with 
  nets, 
  and 
  

   they 
  never 
  take 
  bait. 
  The 
  brilliant 
  red 
  mullet, 
  for 
  instance, 
  (I 
  give 
  only 
  the 
  

   common 
  names) 
  will 
  not 
  touch 
  bait, 
  and 
  lives 
  in 
  hollows 
  in 
  the 
  rocks 
  or 
  around 
  

   the 
  kelp, 
  where 
  nets 
  could 
  not 
  be 
  dragged. 
  This 
  fish 
  is 
  far 
  handsomer 
  than 
  the 
  

   gold-fish 
  of 
  our 
  aquariums. 
  

  

  I 
  am 
  now 
  about 
  to 
  relate 
  what 
  will, 
  perhaps, 
  be 
  called 
  a 
  genuine 
  " 
  fish 
  story"; 
  

   but 
  as 
  I 
  have, 
  in 
  addition 
  to 
  my 
  own, 
  the 
  testimony 
  of 
  my 
  men 
  to 
  the 
  fact, 
  I 
  

   give 
  it 
  as 
  it 
  occurred. 
  

  

  I 
  had 
  brought 
  up 
  by 
  an 
  explosion 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  yellow 
  bass 
  fish, 
  weighing 
  

   about 
  four 
  pounds 
  each. 
  These 
  are 
  delicious 
  in 
  chowder, 
  and 
  so, 
  instead 
  of 
  put- 
  

   ting 
  them 
  in 
  alcohol, 
  I 
  had 
  them 
  clcaned,which 
  was 
  done 
  by 
  scaling, 
  removing 
  the 
  

   intestines, 
  and 
  cutting 
  off 
  the 
  fins 
  and 
  tail. 
  The 
  head, 
  however, 
  stiii 
  remained 
  

   joined 
  to 
  the 
  backbone. 
  These 
  fish, 
  from 
  the 
  time 
  they 
  had 
  been 
  taken 
  from 
  the 
  

   water 
  up 
  to 
  the 
  time 
  of 
  cleaning, 
  remained 
  apparently 
  lifeless. 
  Nor 
  did 
  the 
  re- 
  

   moval 
  of 
  the 
  intestines 
  arouse 
  them. 
  They 
  were 
  then 
  taken 
  up 
  to 
  the 
  old 
  bar- 
  

   racks, 
  where 
  I 
  was 
  temporarily 
  camped, 
  and 
  hung 
  upon 
  nails 
  driven 
  in 
  the 
  clap- 
  

   boards. 
  Some 
  little 
  time 
  after 
  they 
  had 
  been 
  thus 
  disposed 
  of, 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  men 
  came 
  

   in 
  and 
  asked 
  me 
  to 
  go 
  out 
  and 
  look 
  at 
  the 
  fish. 
  I 
  did 
  so, 
  and 
  found 
  every 
  iadi- 
  

   vidual 
  bass 
  slapping 
  around 
  in 
  as 
  lively 
  a 
  manner 
  as 
  if 
  he 
  had 
  been 
  freshly 
  

   caught 
  and 
  hung 
  ifj^. 
  

  

  They 
  had, 
  in 
  fact, 
  recovered 
  from 
  the 
  explosion, 
  and 
  proceeded 
  to 
  die 
  in 
  the 
  

   common 
  fashion. 
  I 
  took 
  one 
  down 
  and 
  broke 
  the 
  backbone 
  where 
  it 
  joined 
  the 
  

   head. 
  Its 
  struggles 
  ceased 
  instantly, 
  thus 
  showing 
  that 
  the 
  vital 
  force 
  had 
  

   been 
  arrested 
  in 
  the 
  nerve 
  centers 
  and 
  brain 
  at 
  the 
  time 
  of 
  explosion, 
  and 
  when 
  

   the 
  effect 
  had 
  passed 
  away 
  that 
  the 
  fish 
  had 
  resumed 
  a 
  galvanic 
  life. 
  

  

  It 
  was 
  probably 
  about 
  half 
  an 
  hour 
  from 
  the 
  time 
  of 
  explosion 
  when 
  this 
  

   occurrence 
  took 
  place. 
  I 
  have 
  not 
  been 
  able 
  since, 
  however, 
  to 
  secure 
  the 
  same 
  

   result, 
  although 
  I 
  must 
  state 
  that 
  the 
  only 
  time 
  since 
  then 
  that 
  I 
  have 
  tried 
  

   the 
  experiment 
  was 
  on 
  the 
  CTregon 
  coast, 
  where 
  I 
  brought 
  up 
  a 
  school 
  of 
  sal- 
  

   mon, 
  all 
  of 
  which 
  were 
  pickled 
  for 
  Agassiz. 
  These 
  fish 
  were, 
  however, 
  too 
  

   close 
  to 
  the 
  explosion, 
  as 
  they 
  were 
  killed 
  outright. 
  

  

  In 
  referring 
  to 
  the 
  use 
  of 
  these 
  cartridges, 
  I 
  would 
  state 
  that 
  I 
  have 
  carefully 
  

   avoided 
  transgressing 
  any 
  of 
  the 
  laws 
  on 
  the 
  subject 
  against 
  destruction 
  of 
  

   trout 
  or 
  other 
  valuable 
  fish 
  of 
  the 
  fresh 
  water 
  streams 
  ; 
  but 
  as 
  the 
  fish 
  of 
  the 
  

   sea 
  are 
  unlimited 
  in 
  number, 
  I 
  do 
  not 
  see 
  that 
  any 
  objection, 
  beyond 
  the 
  danger 
  

   of 
  accident 
  to 
  the 
  operator, 
  can 
  be 
  urged 
  against 
  their 
  use 
  in 
  the 
  ocean, 
  and 
  it 
  

   certainly 
  offers 
  a 
  means 
  of 
  securing 
  rare 
  specimens 
  not 
  obtainable 
  by 
  net 
  or 
  

   line. 
  

  

  In 
  reference 
  to 
  the 
  fishing 
  off 
  Catalina 
  Island, 
  I 
  would 
  state 
  that 
  it 
  in 
  my 
  

   mind 
  constitutes 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  principal 
  values 
  attached 
  to 
  this 
  property 
  so 
  lately 
  

   deeded 
  by 
  Mr. 
  Lick 
  for 
  benevolent 
  and 
  scientific 
  purposes. 
  

  

  