14 WILD SPORTS IN THE FAR "WEST. 



several strange substances floating on the sea, which I 

 could not observe more closely, for want of a net to 

 catch them : I decided on making one. 



All went well for several days ; the weather 

 improved, sea-sickness disappeared, and the fair sex 

 began to show themselves on deck. I had made a net, 

 fastened it to a staff, and kept it in readiness for any 

 thing remarkable floating past ; indeed, for me, every 

 thing that floated by was remarkable, or at least 

 Avorth examination. I caught a number of jelly-like 

 creatures, which had the power of rising or sinking in 

 the water, and also that of motion ; one kind being about 

 five or six inches long, and one and a half or two 

 broad, hollow, and provided with a sort of stomach 

 marked by a dark spot, the only compact part of the 

 animal. If left on a dry board for a couple of hours, 

 it resolved itself into water, excepting the stomach 

 and a slimy opaque mass with a very thin fine skin. 

 Sometimes we saw numbers of them linked together, 

 and always with the dark spot on one side. Some 

 snails were caught resembling land snails : their shells 

 contained a blue liquid, which seemed adapted to give 

 a beautiful dye. I wrote a fcAV lines Avith this dye to 

 see how the color lasted, and found that it did not 

 change in the least. The most beautiful of all this 

 species is unquestionably the " Nautilus," or, as the 

 English call it, " Portuguese man-of-war." It can raise 

 itself about three inches above the surface, and steer 

 its own course, but disappears in a storm ; numerous 

 feelers of two, three, and four feet, serve to provide 

 nourishment. I caught one in my net, and happening 

 to touch it with the back of my hand, it made it smart 



