76 NATURAL HISTORY. 



the sand, and fastens itself by the byssus to the surround- 

 ing stones. Fine gloves and stockings are made from 

 these silk-like threads, and in the south of Italy and 

 Sicily, they are employed in the manufacture of precious 

 stuffs ; they sometimes contain pearls. It is a popular 

 belief that the pinna lives in close intimacy with a small 

 crab, which warns it on the approach of its most formid- 

 able enemy, namely, the cuttle fish. 



The Moss Muscle (mytilus edulis) is smooth, violet- 

 colored ; nearly wedge-shaped ; more than two inches 

 long, and one and a half broad ; is found in every sea, 

 mostly on sand banks, not far from the shore. The foot 

 is slender, cylindrical, protruding like a tongue, and fur- 

 nished with a silky byssus, which, spun by the animal, 

 enables it to fasten itself on other muscles. When the 

 mytilus is about to station itself anywhere, it opens its 

 shell, protrudes its foot, and feels around for a suitable 

 spot; this being selected, is covered with an adhesive 

 fluid secreted by the animal ; the foot is again drawn 

 back, and a thread spun, and this process is repeated 

 until a sufficient number is produced to serve as steady 

 anchor cords. They are said to possess a flavor superior 

 to that of the oyster, but sometimes occasion a kind of 

 poisoning ; they are better to be eaten cooked than raw. 



The Lithodomus (mytilus lythophagus) is cylindrical, 

 four inches long, and about one in thickness ; of dark 

 horn color, with latticed stripes. This muscle is found 

 imbedded in chalk cliffs and other rocks, which it bores 

 into a number of cells, resembling those of a honey-comb. 

 How this is accomplished is wonderful, as the shell of the 

 creature is softer than the rock it perforates, and if by 

 means of an acid, as some suppose, it is as likely to ope- 

 rate upon the shell as the stone. At all events no such 



