THE DRAWING OF THE SEINE. 151 



convinced that some fishes are no fools, whatever others 

 may be. 



While still peering into the nooks and crannies of 

 the mat of weeds, I caught a glimpse of one little fellow 

 that I failed, at the moment, to recognize. It was too 

 " deeply, darkly, beautifully blue" for any of our cypri- 

 noids or other small fish found in Poaetquissings Creek. 

 Carefully bringing it to light, it proved to be a little 

 four-spined stickleback, such as is often found in creeks 

 farther down the river, but does not often wander into 

 this, the uppermost stream aifected by the tide. Every 

 spring, since the summer of 1870, I have been on the 

 lookout for their curious nests, but without success. 

 Every old fisherman to whom I applied for information 

 made reply to the effect that he had never seen either 

 such a fish or its nest. In the upper waters of the creek 

 they were very abundant during the summer of 1865, 

 and I found several nests; in succeeding years they 

 were present, but in fewer numbers, and during the 

 summer of 1869 they had disappeared. Sometimes it 

 happens that a freshet in summer restocks our streams 

 with fishes not otherwise occurring here, and so it may 

 have been in this case. 



The little stickleback that I found to-day exhibited a 

 degree of irascibility that gave it claim to a high degree 

 of intelligence as a fish. Indeed, they are much among 

 fishes what the wrens are among birds. My captive re- 

 sented all interference with promptness and pluck, and 

 was particularly incensed when jostled by large fishes. 

 In this, as in all its movements, it reminded me of one 

 of its kind captured several years ago. This I placed 



