FISH, THE PEOPLE OF THE SEA 



striped longitudinally with brown or black and 

 white. It has a long, cylindrical, toothless mouth, 

 and may occasionally be taken with small fish 

 for bait. For all it looks like an emaciated vieux 



marcheur of the pike family, it is no fighting fish, 

 and is never seen to swim at all rapidly. It seems 

 to hang suspended on an invisible wire that may 

 be attached anywhere, and so hang in any posi- 

 tion. It probably cultivates a dead-stick appear- 

 ance to enable it to approach its prey. Oddly 

 enough, small fish do not seem to fear its pres- 

 ence as they do that of a barracuda. It will often 

 come among them when they are investigating a 

 conch bait, which it will inspect critically but 

 never eat. Probably each knows to a fin-breadth 

 how near it may safely be suffered to approach, 

 and a healthy fish must know exactly its own 

 powers of escape. Let it once be tethered to a 

 hook, though it swim crooked never so little, indi- 



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