HALIEUTICA, V. 360-389 



it in the waves. And when the Lanma espies it, 

 she rushes and puts forth the strength of her jaws, 

 and straightway her crooked teeth are entangled in 

 the strap and are held fast as if in chains. There- 

 after it is an easy task to kill the Lanina with blows 

 of the iron trident. 



Ravenous pre-eminently among the hateful Sea- 

 monsters and gluttonous are the monster tribes of 

 the Dog-fishes ° ; and they are pre-eminentlv insolent 

 and proud and will fear nothing that they meet, 

 haWng unbridled shamelessness ever swelling hke a 

 frenzy in their hearts. Often they rush upon the 

 nets of the fishermen or attack their weels and 

 destroy their fishy spoil, while fattening their own 

 hearts. And a watchful fisherman may pierce them 

 with the hook in the frenzy of their gluttony and 

 land them along with the fishes, a pleasant spoil of 

 his fishing. 



For the Seal no hooks are fashioned nor any three- 

 pronged spear which could capture it : for exceeding 

 hard is the hide which it has upon its limbs as a 

 mighty hedge. But when the fishermen have un- 

 wittingly enclosed a seal among the fishes in their 

 well- woven nets, then there is swift labour and 

 haste to pull the nets ashore. For no nets, even if 

 there are very many at hand, would stay the raging 

 seal, but with its violence and sharp claws it will 

 easily break them and rush away and prove a succour 

 to the pent-up fishes but a great grief to the hearts 

 of the fishermen. But if betimes they bring it near 

 the land, there with trident and mighty clubs and 

 stout spears they smite it on the temples * and kill 



* A. 567 a 10 diroKTelrat S^ ^o/r ^o^fo' jStaiwj, fd;" firi 

 rts -rard^rj xapa. rbr Kp&ra^xW rd 700 <TQfj.a (xapKwSfi avTijs. 



489 



