20 CLASS MOLLUSCA. 



differs in shape in the different species, but is always 

 somewhat oval in its form, though varying considerably 

 in texture. 



The Argonaut, (^Argonauta argo.) 



The tender Nautilus that steers its prow. 

 The sea-born sailor in its light canoe. 



****** 

 He, when the lightning-winged tornadoes sweep 

 The surge, is safe ; his home is in the deep. 

 He triumphs o'er the armadas of mankind, 

 That shake the world, but tremble in the wind. 



The curious inhabitant of this elegant shell has, from 

 the earliest ages, excited the admiration of the student 

 in natural history ; and, at the same time, its real place 

 in the system has eluded the research of the most acute 

 observers. The animal agrees, in many points, with the 

 sepia, or cuttle fish, which never possesses a shelly 

 covering, so that, had it been found without that beau- 

 tiful addition, naturalists would have referred it, without 

 hesitation, to that particular division of the dwellers in 

 the deep ; it is, however, always met with along with the 

 shell ; and, although there appears to be no bond of union 

 between the tenant and its dwelling, still the purposes 

 to which it applies it, imply, at any rate, a long-con- 

 tinued occupancy, if they do not absolutely point out the 

 Nautilus as the original architect of the shell. 



The name Argonaut has been applied to this sea- 

 born navigator from its resemblance, when floating on 

 the surface of the waves, to a vessel in full sail, Argo 

 being the name of the ship, which was supposed to have 

 been the first fitted out for commercial adventure. 



In calm Summer days, these beautiful little creatures 

 may be seen, in considerable numbers, steering their 



