io8 THE DOREE. 



caught a fifti of this kind en pajfant ; and as an eternal 

 memorial of the fad, left the impreffions on its fides, to 

 be tranfmitted for the infpe^lion of all pofterity *. 



The hideous afpc6t of this fifli long baniflied it from 

 our table, till the celebrated comedian and epicure ^uin 

 introduced it. It required only his affertion to make it a 

 delicious fifli, and efFedually to eftabliHi its reputation 

 among the mofl delicate viands of the times. It is very 

 common in the Mediterranean, the Bay of Bifcay, and on 

 the French coaft; fo when Ovid terms it rare j-, it muft 

 have been owing to its delicacy, rather that its fcarcity. 



There is a fpecies belonging to this tribe peculiar {o 

 the Indian feas, termed by Willoughhy, faber Indicus, of 

 a very remarkable appearance ; the firll ray of the dorfal 

 Hn extends far beyond the tip of the tail ; that of the 

 anal fin is nearly of the fame length ; while the two pec- 

 toral fins feem to confift only of a fingle ray, and extend, 

 almoft to the tail t. 



Vje Opah Ij. 



This fifli belongs to the genus of dorees, although it far 

 furpaffes them in magnitude, weighing in fome inftances 

 an hundred and forty pounds j meafuring three or four 

 feet in length, by two and a quarter in depth. It is fo 

 much compreffed laterally, that its greatefl: thickngfs is 

 only four inches. The colour of the opah is a vivid 



tranf- 



* Willough. page 295, where Aldrov. afferts, that it is frequently hung 

 up in the Italian churches, fo renowned for fable. 



f Rarus Faher. Vide Halieut. \ Willough, Append. |. 



I! Opah, or King-fifh, Phil. Tranf. Opah, Btit. Zoo!. 



