FISHES. 485 



ceous tribes are seen fierce in the ])ui'suit ; urging their prey from 

 one creek or bay to another, deterring them from the shallows, 

 driving them towards each other's ambush, and using a greater 

 variety of arts than hounds are seen to exert in pursuing the hare. 

 However, the porpoise not only seeks for prey near the surface, 

 but often descends to the bottom in search of sand-eels, and sea- 

 worms, which it roots out of the sand with its nose, in the man- 

 ner hogs harrow up the fields for food. For this purpose, the 

 nose projects a little, is shorter and stronger than that of the 

 dolphin ; and the neck is furnished with very strong muscles, 

 which enable it the readier to turn up the sand. 



But it sometimes happens, that the impetuosity, or the hun- 

 ger, of these animals, in their usual pursuits, urges them beyond 

 the limits of safety. The fishermen, who extend their long nets 

 for pilchards, on the coasts of Cornwall, have sometimes an un- 

 welcome capture in one of these. — Their feeble nets, which are 

 calculated only for taking smaller prey, sufier a universal lacera- 

 tion from the efforts of this strong animal to escape ; and if it 

 be not knocked on the head, before it has had time to flounder, 

 the nets are destroyed, and the fishery interrupted. There is 

 nothing, therefore, they so much dread, as the entangling a por- 

 poise ; and they do every thing to intimidate the animal from 

 a})proacliing.* 



Indeed, these creatures are so violent in the pursuit of their 

 prey, that they sometimes follow a shoal of small fishes up a 

 fresh-water river, from when(-e they find no small difficulty to 

 return. We have often seen them taken in the Thames at 

 London, both above the bridges and below them. It is curious 

 enough to observe with what activity they avoid their pursuers, 

 and what little time they require to fetch breath above the wa- 

 ter. The manner of killing them is for four or five boats to 

 spread over the part of the river in which they are seen, and 

 with fire-arms to shoot at them the instant they rise above the 

 water. The fish being thus for some time kept in agitation, re- 

 quires to come to the surface at quicker intervals, and tluid 

 afifords the marksmen more frequent ojjportunities. 



» Durinc; a scarcity of fish, porpoises are said to dive to the bo ttoin, ni.'d 

 root, like liogs, among the sand, for sand-eels and sea-worms. Hence ia 

 most lanifunges they receive the name of sea-hogs. Porpoise has thatsigiii. 

 fication in thp Italian. 



2s3 



