39 



It will be readily understood that the two eyes cannot be brought 

 round to one cheek without great distortion of "the bones of the skull ; 

 many of the bones on the colored side are cramped in their develop- 

 ment, squeezed into a narrow space, out of the way of the encroach- 

 ing eye; while some of the bones of the blind side are correspond- 

 ingly enlarged, filling up, by their lateral extension, the place where, 

 so to speak, the eye ought to be. Now, a distortion of this import- 

 ance, if it were not of universal occurrence in the whole tribe, would 

 be considered a monstrosity; and it became an interesting question 

 to ascertain at what point in the life history of these fishes the distor- 

 tion commenced. Surely so very important and radical a modifica- 

 tion of the skull and bones of the head must commence at the very 

 first beginning of the formation of the fish, before it is hatched from 

 the ovum. But it has lately been conclusively proved that this is not 

 the case. Professor Alexander Agassiz has watched the development 

 of young flounders, and has proved that when first hatched, they 

 resemble other fishes in the position of the eyes and the symmetrical 

 form of the head ; and that the distortion is the result of habit, 

 which habit again increases the distortion, precisely as claimed by the 

 advocates of what is usually called " evolution." That is to say, the 

 young fishes seek the bottom of the water, yet strive to use the lower 

 eye. By the continued effort to use this, the soft structure of the 

 head is aff'ected, and an oblique upward view is gained. This renders 

 the fish less fitted than before for locomotion in the usual manner, and 

 more adapted for keeping at the bottom, which it accordingly does, 

 with the result that the eye becomes more and more twisted till it 

 at last has passed clear over the dorsal ridge of the animal, and makes 

 its appearance on the same side with the other eye. This side is, in 

 some species, the right, while in others it is the left side. All this 

 takes place while the creature is young, before the bones are hardened 

 It would appear that in some cases, the eye literally passes through the 

 head. 



But it must be remembered that the bones of fishes are, as a whole, 

 much softer than those of reptiles, birds, or mammals, and therefore 

 much more capable of yielding to impressions from the outside 

 without the destruction of the life of the organism. 



Thirteen species of these fishes are now known to occur on this 

 part of the coast, and all of them are brought to our markets more 

 or less frequently. All these species belong to the family Pleuronec- 

 tidx, or flounders, from which the Soleidse, or soles, are distinguished 

 by the absence or rudimentary condition of the pectoral fins. 

 Although no real sole occurs here, all the species except the two 

 known as " halibut," that called " turbot," and another which the 

 dealers know as " bastard turbot," are sold in the market under the 

 name of " sole." 



HipiJoglossus vulgaris, Halibut— The rarest of these species is a true 

 halibut, or Hiq^poglossus, which Professor Goode, the well known ich- 

 thyologist, believes to be identical with the Atlantic species Hippog- 

 lossus vulgaris. Mppoglossus vulgaris, an Arctic species, extends there- 

 fore along the coasts of Europe, eastern North America, and Northwest 

 America, reaching on this coast the latitade of San Francisco, which 

 is probably its most southern point. It is occasionally taken at the 

 Farallone Islands, but as yet I have only seen a single specimen 

 brought from thence. To the northward, about Vancouver Island, it 

 becomes abundant, as it is also in Alaska. This fish is greatly 



