Tin: > r< -A-/ v<;- //>// -JIT 



At la>t. however, he daubed at the tempting morsel :iinl was captured, to the sorrow of tin- 

 Pilot-fishes, who swam altout for some time in search of th.-ir fri.-nd, und then darted down 



into tli-- depths of the 



BLITE-FISH (Pom<Uamv$ taUator), called in some quarters GRF.KN FISH and SKIP-JACK. 

 This is valued generally a.s one of tin- i-Iioioest of ocean fishes, being much the same as the 



mackerel as :i fc.o.1 lisli, hut rather preferred. In tin- first quarter of this century. Hint- fishes 

 wen- unknown in N.-\v Knirland above Cape God. About 1850, single indh iduals were taken 

 at Nahant. and for several years a few were taken. :md valued \.T\ hi-lih. >'>n we heard 

 of their :il>iin.liuioe to such an extent that they were haul-.l on to the land as manure, on the 



i.asf al>"\e < ':i]..- < ' I \Vitha_- ..... 1 IT- / :in.l trollin- line-. tlii^ li-li :itT<.rds much .s|.ori. 



Its ninge is remarkable; it is found in the Mediterranean and Indian O-ean, and near New 

 Holland. Blue-fish are very destructive to the mackerel fishery. They are vonirioua and 



|I:I\.H- in lli.- -li...iN ..!' ill. is.- li-.li.->. 



I'IIK POMPASO (Trat'ht/noi'ix irnlinut) \s a iniu-h prized fish of the Southern waters, 

 ranking ahead of all others. It is put down in salt for the market, and is always in great 

 r.-<pi.'st. In South Carolina it is called Ci:i \ M.LI. Ita range is from Cape Cod to Florida. 



MM KM:KL (Sctmiheroinonut maculalus). A "sea-going" fish, but frequently 

 exposed for sale in New York markets. 



KVKKY on-- lias heard of th-- Si . KINL KI-II. and th-re are few who are not acquainted 

 with flu- wild and fabulous tal.-s narrated of its |Mwers. 



This little tish wa.s i-.-]MirtMl to adhere to the bottom of shijw, and to arrest their progress 

 as suddenly and firmly as if they h.-d struck upon a rock. The winds might blow, the sails 

 might till, and the musts creak, but the \u\-~- -n tish below could hold the vessel by its single 

 force, and ntine her to the same spot as if at anchor. It is wonderful how fully this fable 

 \\:is received, and II--A MM] fMOWt ii'-'-d'-d t.. r.M.t tin- l-.-IL-f .mi >{ pr.-judic.-d minds. 

 Both wientitic names n-f.-r to this so-called property, echeiuis signifying "shipholder," and 



/-; m.-aniiit: dflay. 



That th.- Sucking-fish is able to adhere, strongly to smooth surfaces is a well-known fact, 

 the process being accomplished by means of the curious shield or disc ujMin the upper surface 

 of the head ami shouldrrv This ,\\^<- is composed of a numl>er of flat, l>ony lamiiue. arranged 

 parallel to each other in a niannrr iv-mbling the common w.MHl.-n window-blind, and irapable 

 of l>eing raised or depressed at will. It is found by anatomical investigation, that these 

 lamina; are fonm-d by modifications of the spinous dorsal fin, the numl>er of lamina? corre- 

 sponding to that of the spines. They are moved by a series of muscles set obliquely ; and 

 when tin> tish |,|.-ss.'s the soft edge of the disc against any smooth object and then depresses 

 the lamina 1 , a vacuum is formed, causing tin- fish to adhere tightly to the spot upon which the 

 disc is placed. 



When the creature has once fixed itself, it cannot be detached without much difficulty ; 

 and the only method of removing it, without tearing the body or disc, is to slide it forwards 

 in a direction corresponding with the set of the lamina-. In the opposite din-ction it cannot 

 be moved ; and the fish, therefore, when adhering to a moving body, takes care to fix itself in 

 such a manner that it cannot be washed off by the water through which it is drawn. Even 

 after death, or when the disc is separated from the body, this curious organ can be applied to 

 any smooth object, and will hold with tolerable firmness. In order to accommodate the disc, 

 the upper part of the skull is llatt.-iifd and rather id-ned. 



The Sucking-fish will attach itself to many moving objects, and has been found adhering 

 to the plankings of ships and boats, to turtles, to whales, and to fishes of various kinds. 

 Even the albacore, which eats the Sucking-fish whenever it can catch it. is occasionally hon- 

 ored by its adhesion, and in the British seas a specimen has been captured while sticking to a 

 cod-fish. The shark, however, is its favorite companion ; and it often happens that one of 



