Myth of the Ship-holder, 287 



ralists, of wonderful tilings done by tlicRemora, or Ecbeneis 

 and not without some surprise will have learnt Pliny's story, 

 who after having told us, on the faith of another^ how 

 Anthony was retarded on his voyage by means of this fish, 

 asserts positively, tiiat a ship with Caligula on board and 

 four hundred rowers, was actually stopped by one of these 

 fishes, while the rest of the fleet went on at a great rate. 

 When I read this, I contented myself to shrug my shoulders, 

 without perplexing my brain to find out by what natural 

 processes, or matter of fact, such an opinion could become 

 so generally received, that a man of sense as Pliny certainly 

 was, should affirm it in positive terms. But chance led me 

 to the discovery. We were sailing in a small bark between 

 Vruillia and Alraissa with afresh equal gale, in the afternoon. 

 The mariners were all at rest, and the steersmau only was 

 awake, and attended alone in silence to the direction of the 

 bark ; when, on a sudden, we heard him call aloud to one 

 of his companions, ordering iiim to come and kill the 

 Paklara. Our learned friend Signior Guilio Bajaraonti was 

 with me, and understanding what the man meant, desired 

 him to show him the fish that he wanted killed, but the fish 

 was gone. Having interrogated the steersman, who di(i not 

 want sense, and was a fisherman by profession, why lie had 

 ordered the Paklara killed, and what harm it had done; he 

 answered, without hesitation, that the Paklara used to take 

 hold of the rudder with his teeth, and retarded the course of 

 the bark so sensibly, that not only he, but every man who 

 sat at the helm felt it there without seeing it. He added, 

 that many a time he himself had catched the Paklara in the 

 act and had frequently killed and eat it. That it was often 

 met with in the waters of Lissa. That in shape it resembled 

 a conger eel, and in length did not usually exceed a foot and 

 a half. That if I had a mind to see, and catch one of them 

 I needed only to go in a fishing boat, in the warm season, 

 between tlie islands of Lessina and Lissa, where he had 

 never failed to meet with them every year. I will not desire 

 you to believe everything my pilot said; but confess that 1 

 should be very glad to see the Paklara when it had taken 

 hold of the rudder of the bark under sail. I lie wonderfnl 

 strength of the muscles of some little marine animals, such 

 as the Lepades, that so obstinately resist any attem[)ts to 

 disengage tliem from their rocks, the stroke proceeding with 

 such rap;dity from the Torpedo, known at Venice by the 

 name oi' pesce tremolo and in the sea of Daln.atia by that of 

 Trnak; the vigor shewn by the Dentici iw their convulsive 

 motions even when out of their own element, not to mention 



