250 OCTOBER 



I was nearly a whole day passing through a fleet of 

 these little Portuguese men-of-war, which studded the 

 smooth sea as far as the eye could reach, and must have 

 extended for many miles. These were of all sizes with- 

 in the limits I have mentioned. Generally, there is a 

 conspicuous difference between the two extremities of 

 the bladder, one end being rounded, while the other is 

 more pointed, or is terminated by a small knob-like 

 swelling, or beak-shaped excrescence, where there is a 

 minute orifice. Sometimes, however, no such excres- 

 cence is visible, and the orifice cannot be detected. 



The bladder is filled with air, and therefore floats 

 almost wholly on the surface. Along the upper side, 

 nearly from end to end, runs a thin ridge of membrane, 

 which is capable of being erected at the will of the 

 animal to a considerable height, fully equal at times to 

 the entire width of the bladder, when it represents an 

 arched fore-and-aft sail, the bladder being the hull 

 From the bottom of the bladder, near the thickest ex- 

 tremity, where there is a denser portion of the membrane, 

 depends a crowded mass of organs, most of which take 

 the form of very slender, highly contractile, and move- 

 able threads, which hang down into the deep to a depth 

 of many feet, or even occasionally, of several yards. 



The colours of this curious creature are very vivid : 

 the bladder, though in some parts transparent and 



