336 Big Game Fishes 



easy-going, playing about the coral heads, lying 

 in gorgonian snug corners, a gorgeous poseur, a 

 scaled coxcomb of the fishes' rialto, perhaps the 

 last individual of this gorgeous throng that would 

 be selected as a hard fighter, a breaker of hooks. 

 The names given fishes are sometimes without 

 rhyme or reason ; but no better appellative could 

 be chosen than the sea-parrot for this doughty 

 creature which lay upon the surface, rolling its 

 oddly colored blue and yellow eyes, flapping its 

 broad pectoral fins, and occasionally lifting its big 

 tail to scatter water over the boat, as though to 

 emphasize the fact that while in the toils it 

 hurled defiance at us. In color and general 

 appearance it suggested some of the gaudy ma- 

 caws, especially in color, as encased in an armor 

 of huge scales it was painted a vivid turquoise 

 blue from head to tail, and possessed a remark- 

 able set of beaks, solid nippers, and biters also 

 colored. Other fishes have more tints, are more 

 beautiful ; yet I recall none which made a more 

 striking impression upon my mind than this sea- 

 parrot, which eyed me so intently, I fancied, 

 wondering whether I was the kind of an angler 

 who had a high appreciation of a good fighter 

 and would release it, or whether I was merely 



