Natural Htftory of the Ancients. 2 1 5 



mackerel, and the like had been inveftigated by 

 the Greek philofopher. He had alfo learnt that 

 this united movement of certain kinds of fifh (oi 

 'Xyrol, as he terms them ; " fim that fwim in com- 

 panies ") was preliminary to their fpawning near 

 the coafts in mallow water, 1 although his reafons 

 for thefe migrations might furnim a logician with 

 inftances of the fallacy, Non caufa 'pro cavja. 

 " Now of fifties," he remarks, " fome migrate to 

 the land from the fea, and to the fea again from 

 the land, in order to avoid the extremes of heat 

 and cold. Thofe which are taken near the more 

 are better than oceanic fiihes, for they have more, 

 and better, fuftenance ; as wherever the. fur* ftrikes 

 it produces more numerous, and better, and more 

 tender creatures, juft as may be feen in garden 

 produce." 2 Poffeiling a wide knowledge, too, 

 of the different modes of generation among fim, 

 even he is not fuperior to many prejudices, and to 

 the influence of much which would now be termed 

 folk-lore. " Some fim are fprung from mud and 

 fand, even among fuch families as generate in the 

 ordinary manner with eggs. This happens in 

 marfhes and fuch places, juft as is faid once, to 

 have happened at Cnidus.. There the water was 

 dried up by the dog-days, and all the mud taken 

 out ; but the water began to teem with life as 

 foon as the firft mowers fell, and in this place 

 little fifh were generated as the water began to 

 rife." This is ftill a vulgar belief. Another, 



1 Ariftot., " De Nat. Anim.," v. 9. 



2 Ibid., viii. 15. 



