Dolphin Fishing, I2i 



time they all drop into their natural element. While 

 they are travelling in the air their keen and hungry pur 

 suer, like a greyhound, follows in their wake, and per- 

 forming a succession of leaps many feet in extent, rapidly 

 gains upon the quarry, which is often seized just as it 

 falls into the sea. Dolphins manifest a very remarkable 

 sympathy with each other. The moment one of them is 

 hooked or grained, as sailors technically name their man- 

 ner of harpooning, those in company make up to it, and 

 remain around until the unfortunate fish is pulled on 

 board, when they generally move off together, seldom 

 biting at anything thrown out to them. This, however, 

 is the case only with the larger individuals, which keep 

 apart from the young, in the same manner as is observed 

 in several species of birds; for when the smaller dol- 

 phins are in large shoals they all remain under the bows 

 of the ship, and bite in succession at any sort of line, as 

 if determined to see what has become of their lost com- 

 panions. The dolphins caught in the Gulf of Mexico 

 during our voyage were suspected to be poisonous ; and 

 to ascertain whether this was really the case, our cook, 

 who was an African negro, never boiled or fried one with- 

 out placing beside it a dollar. If the silver was not tar- 

 nished by the time the dolphin was ready for the table, 

 the fish was presented to the passengers with the as- 

 surance that it was perfectly good. But as not a single 

 individual of the hundred that we caught had the prop- 

 erty of converting silver into copper, I suspect that our 

 African sage was no magician. One morning, that of 

 the 22 nd of June, the weather sultry, I was surprised, on 

 getting out of my hammock, which was slung on deck, to 

 find the water all round swarming with dolphins, which 

 were sporting in great glee. The sailors assured me that 

 this was a certain ' token of wind,' and, as they watched 

 the movement of the fishes, added, * ay, and a fair breeze 

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