MOLLUSCA. 77 



acid is found within the valves, for this species of mytila 

 is also eaten and found very palatable. The lithodomus 

 is met with in all the warmer seas, mostly in the Medi- 

 terranean. 



The Chamacea, of which the principal is the muscle 

 known as the Nail Shell (chama gigas),* are white, 

 oblong, with shells usually lamellar and rough, and the 

 largest of the tribe ; they are about five feet in length, 

 and so heavy that it requires from six to eight men to 

 carry one. Seen through the opening of the valve, the 

 creature appears hideously ugly ; has the semblance of a 

 snake skin full of black, yellow, and white veins. It is 

 dangerous to approach it too closely, for an arm or leg 

 may be the price of such temerity. Divers venture suf- 

 ficiently near to encircle them with ropes, and in this 

 manner only can they be drawn to the surface ; they are 

 considered very good food, and as one is sufficient to fur- 

 nish a meal for several men, the trouble of taking them 

 is repaid. The Orientals make bathing-tubs and basins 

 for small springs from the shells. This genus belongs 

 entirely to the Indian Ocean, but especially to the coasts 

 of Macassar. 



The Painter's Shell (mya pictorum), plate 25, fig. 1, 

 about three inches long, and one broad ; of an oblong 

 oval form ; brownish below, but seemingly rubbed off 

 above. It is found in the mud of all rivers, and, as if 

 fearful of danger, buries itself in the sand with great 

 rapidity. If viewed in a glass, the reception of the 

 water which serves for the nutriment of the body, and 

 its ejection through the small tubes, may be distinctly 



* Kno-rn by the vulgar name of The Holy Water Pot. The shell 

 itself often weighs three hundred pounds. Tr. 



