106 PLINY ON THE POULPE. 



the rings unite and coalesce, and form a beautiful netted pattern 

 of brown, which colour increasing, leaves the interspaces a series 

 of white spots in the rich dark ground. . . . But here is a 

 change ! One is hovering in quiescence, his colour pale, almost 

 white : one of his fellows shoots along, just over him ; with the 

 quickness of thought the alarmed creature turns from white to a 

 uniform deep brown, the rich full colour suffusing the skin in a 

 second, like a blush on a young maiden's face." 



There can be but little doubt that the power with which the 

 Cephalopoda are endowed, of thus incessantly changing their 

 colour, is designed to serve as an additional means of protection 

 against discovery. The larger species, indeed, are commonly 

 observed to harmonize their colour to that of the surface over 

 which they pass, so as to render their detection at a short distance 

 a matter of some difficulty. 



Octopus vulyaris, the common Poulpe, already introduced to 

 our readers, is the model Cephalopod of the eight-armed group. 

 This animal has been famous from the earliest ages, and the 

 most marvellous stories are told of its habits. Pliny has a long 

 account of its various accomplishments, and amongst other 

 things, credits it with "keeping of house and maintaining a 

 familie," for whose behoof it is said to carry home to its nest all 

 that it can take ; and, he goes on to say, that, " when they have 

 eaten the meat of the fishes, they throw the empty shels out of 

 dores, and lie as it were in ambuscado behind, to watch and 

 catch fishes that swimme thither." He says it is a " meere tale, 

 that they gnaw and eat their own clees and arms ; for they be 

 the congres that do them that shrewd turn ; but true it is, that 

 they will grow againe like as the taile of snakes, adders, and 

 lizards." But the best thing he gives us is a story of our friend's 

 partiality for cockles, which is so particularly good that, he tells 

 us, he "cannot ouerpasse " it. "They are most desirous and 

 greedie of cockles, muscles, and such like shel fishes : and they, 

 againe, on the contrarie side, so soone as they feele themselues 

 touched of the Polypes, shut their shels hard and therwith cut 

 asunder their clawes or armes that were gotten within : and 

 thus fall they to feed vpon those who sought to make a prey of 

 them. These Polypi, foreseeing all this, lie in wait to spie when 

 the said cockles, &c., gape wide open, and put in a little stone 

 between the shels, but yet beside the flesh and bodie of the fish, 



