FISHES IN GENERAL. 



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dies from the immediate contact of a surround- 

 ing fluid. This substance may be considered 

 as a secretion from the pores of the animal's 

 body ; and serving not only to defend, but lo 

 - assist the fish's easy progress through the: 

 water. Beneath this, in many kinds, is found 

 a strong covering of scales, that, like a coat 

 of mail, defend it still more powerfully; and 

 under that, before we come to the muscular 

 parts of the body, an oily substance, which 

 supplies the requisite warmth and vigour. 



The fish thus protected and fitted for mo- 

 tion in its natural element, seems as well fur- 

 nished with the means of happiness as quad- 

 rupeds or birds; but if we come to examine 

 its faculties more nearly, we shall find it very 

 much their inferior. The sense of touching, 

 which beasts and birds have in a small de- 

 gree, the fish, covered up in its own coat of 

 mail, can have but little acquaintance with. 



The sense of smelling, which in beasts is 

 so exquisite, and among birds is not wholly 

 unknown, seems given to fishes in a very mo- 

 derate proportion. It is true, that all fishes 

 have one or more nostrils; and even those 

 that have not the holes perceptible without, 

 yet have the proper formation of the bones 

 for smelling within. But as air is the only 

 medium we know for thedistribution of odours, 

 it cannot be supposed that these animals, re- 

 siding in water, can be possessed of any 

 power of being affected by them. If they 

 have any perception of smells, it must be in 

 the same manner as we distinguish by our 

 taste; and, it is probable, the olfactory mem- 

 brane in fish serves them instead of a distin- 

 guishing palate: and by this they judge of 

 substances, that, first tincturing the water 

 with their vapours, are thus sent to the nos- 

 trils of the fish, and no doubt produce some 

 kind of sensation. This most probably must 

 be the use of that organ in those animals, as 

 otherwise there would be the instruments of 

 a sense provided for them, without any power 

 in them of enjoyment 



As to tasting, they seem to make very little 

 distinction; the palate of most fish is hard 

 and bony, and consequently incapable of the 

 powers of relishing different substances. This 

 sense among quadrupeds, who possess it in 

 some degree, arises from the soft pliancy of 

 the organ, and the delicacy of the skin which 



covers the instruments of tasting; it may be 

 considered, in them, as a more perfect and 

 delicate kind of feeling : in the bony palate 

 offish, therefore, all powers of distinguishing 

 are utterly taken away ; and we have accord- 

 ingly often seen these voracious animals swal- 

 low the fisherman's plummet instead of the 

 bait. 



Hearing in fishes is found still more imper- 

 fect, if it be found at all. Certain it is, that 

 anatomists have not been able to discover, 

 except in the whale kind, the smallest traces 

 of an organ, either within or without the head 

 of fishes. It is true, that in the centre of the 

 brain of some fishes are found now and then 

 some little bones, the number and situation 

 of which are entirely accidental. These 

 bones Mr. Klein has supposed to constitute 

 the organ of hearing ; but if we consider their 

 entire dissimilitude to the bones that serve 

 for hearing in other animals, we shall be of 

 another opinion. The greatest number of 

 fishes are deprived of these bones entirely : 

 some fish have them in small numbers, and 

 others in abundance : yet neither testify any 

 excellence or defect in hearing. Indeed, of 

 what advantage would this sense be to ani- 

 mals that are incapable of making themselves 

 heard ? They have no voice to communicate 

 to each other, and consequently have no need 

 of an organ for hearing. Mr. Gouan, who kept 

 some gold fishes in a vase, informs us, that 

 whatever noise he made, he could neither dis- 

 turb nor terrify them ; he halloed as loud as 

 he could, putting a piece of paper between 

 his mouth and the water, to prevent the vi- 

 brations from affecting the surface, and the 

 fishes still seemed insensible: but when the 

 paper was removed, and the sound had its 

 full play upon the water, the fishes seemed 

 instantly to feel the change, and shrunk to 

 the bottom. From this we may learn, that 

 fishes are as deaf as they are mute: and that 

 when they seem to hear the call of a whistle 

 or a bell at the edge of a pond, it is rather 

 the vibrations of the sound that affect the wa- 

 ter, by which they are excited, than any 

 sounds that they hear. 



Seeing seems to be the sense fishes are pos- 

 sessed of in the greatest degree ; and yet even 

 this seems obscure, if we compare it to that 

 of other animals. The eye, in almost all fish, 



