MYTILTJS EDULIS, OR MUSSEL. 163 



MYTILUS EDULIS, OR MUSSEL. 



The mytili either adhere to rocks by their 

 byssus, or to the gagomce by a sort of claws ; or 

 they penetrate calcareous rocks, where they reside 

 without changing place; some of them which 

 adhere to rocks near the shore are taken by fisher- 

 men either for bait or food, and men trained for 

 the purpose in some places dive to the bottom of 

 the deep sea in order to bring up such as produce 

 pearls. Of these the ancient Romans were extrava- 

 gantly fond. " It is enough," says Pliny, " to des- 

 poil the sea of its riches in order to gorge our appe- 

 tites ; we must, likewise, both men and women, 

 carry them about on our hands, in our ears, upon 

 our heads, and on our whole body. The word myti- 

 lus is, perhaps, derived from /utroe, a thread, or 

 web ; it is the most common shell on our shores, 

 and is sometimes unsafe to eat ; where it is found 

 inconvenient, vinegar and oil are the remedies. In 

 warm climates they grow to a large size. There are 

 ten varieties of this genus, which is found in 

 abundance in all parts of the known world. There 

 is a very large consumption of these shell-fish 



