ABDOMINAL MALACOPTERYGII. 141 



weapon, for it is so jointed with the bones of the 

 shoulder, that, at will, the fish can either project it 

 stiffly at right angles, or bring it down to the side. 

 Wounds with this spine are the more dreaded, be- 

 cause they are frequently followed by lock-jaw. 

 The Sly Silure (S. Glanis) is the largest fresh-water 

 Fish found in Europe, sometimes weighing three 

 hundred pounds. It hides itself in the mud, display- 

 ing its tentacles as a bait for other fishes, of whose 

 approach it is probably made aware, by a deli- 

 cate sense of touch residing in these appendages. 

 Its flesh is soft and luscious, but neither digestible 

 nor wholesome. The skin is naked, but covered 

 with a mucous slime. To this genus belong several 

 species in the American rivers, familiarly known by 

 the name of Cat-fish. Other species have the place 

 of true scales supplied by large bony plates, envelop- 

 ing the sides ; and some of these have the power of 

 crawling out of the water. 



FAM. IV. SALMONID^E. 



This very important family, whose flesh is so ex- 

 tensively used, and so highly valued as a delicate 

 article of food, is distinguished by a smooth but 

 well scaled, lengthened body, and two dorsals, the 

 first with soft rays, the other called the adipose, 

 small, formed of skin filled with fat, without rays. 

 They generally ascend rivers to spawn, to accomplish 

 which migration, they often overcome obstacles with 

 astonishing strength, ingenuity, and perseverance. 



