March 20, 1884] 



NATURE 



485 



depths of 1090 and 3655 metres ; Lepiodcrma macrops, 

 between 1153 and 3655 metres; and Macrurits nffinis, 

 Ijetween 590 and 2220 metres. The explanation would 

 seem to be not only that the organisation of these fishes 

 is such as enables them to support the enormous pressures 

 at the greater depths of the ocean, but that in the course 

 of their movements of ascent and descent they proceed 

 very slowly so as gradually to get accustomed to the 

 alterations in pressure. These fishes are all flesh eaters, 

 with well developed dental systems ; the absence of light 

 prevents the growth of marine alga; in these depths, and 

 as a gener.il rule all the fish found below 150 metres are 

 of necessity predator)-. These deep-sea fishes, as Dr. 

 (iiinther reminds us, do not belong to any peculiar order, 

 but are chiefly modified forms of surface types; some of 

 these modifications being no doubt very extreme, but 

 serving as indications not only of the struggle for exist- 

 ence, but also of the plasticness of the forms to adapt 

 themselves to the extreme conditions under which they 

 live. The most remarkable phenomena in connection 

 with their deep-sea life is doubtless the tremendous pres- 

 sure which has to be borne. No one seems to doubt but 

 that these deep-sea forms live as active a life as surface 

 forms, indeed their very appearance seems to indicate a 

 swiftness and energy of movement not to be surpassed by 

 surface swimmers ; and we may believe that the abyssal 

 pressure has a great deal to do with keeping their feebly 

 calcareous bones and delicate muscular system compact 

 and in a condition for effective use. The placid state of 

 the water at these depths must also be borne in mind — 

 no storms affect them, and the extraordinary attenuation 

 of some organs may be directly ascribed to this pheno- 

 menon. Thus Macrunis globucps (Fig. i), which forms 

 one of a family of deep-sea Ganoids, known as living at 

 depths of from 600 to 2200 metres, and occurring in con- 

 siderable variety and great numbers over all our oceans, 

 is a new species, described by M. L. Vaillant as found at 

 a depth of between 1500 and 3000 metres. Its body, 

 globular in front, will be seen to be very greatly attenuated 

 behind. 



In some of the deep-sea fishes peculiar organs, un- 

 known for the most part among surface fishes, are to be 

 found ; these are sometimes "more or less numerous, 

 round, showing mother-of-pearl coloured bodies em- 

 bedded in the skin '' ; in some fish these are to be met 

 with on the head, or near the eyes, or along the sides and 

 back. Dr. Gunther informs us that of these strange 

 bodies the following hypotheses are possible: (l) all 

 these different organs are accessory eyes; (2) only those 

 having a lens-like body in their interior are sensory, those 

 with gland-like structure are not sensory but are phos- 

 phorescent ; and (3) all are producers of light. Many 

 serious objections can be urged against the first view. 

 Some of the fish with immense eyes have these bodies, 

 others without eyes want them, while as to glandular 

 bodies being sense organs this is not yet scientifically 

 realisable. One seems therefore justified in adopting the 

 middle hypothesis, and though on first thought it seems 

 strange that fish with large eyes should have accessory 

 eyes, yet Dr. Gtinther's supposition may be the true one 

 — that there are light producers behind the lenses, and 

 that these latter may act the part of " bull's-eyes " in a 

 lantern. This form of "light organ " might constitute a 

 very deadly trap for prey, one moment shining it might 

 attract the curiosity of some simple fish, then extinguished 

 the simple fish would fall an easy prej'. 



Long filamentous organs are to be met with showing 

 apparently a brilliant type of phosphorescence. Among 

 the many curious forms of development of these tac- 

 tile organs to be met with, one of the most singular is 

 that to be seen on a fish referred by M. L. Vaillant to a 

 new genus and species found at a depth of 2700 metres, 

 and represented in the annexed woodcut (Fig. 2). In this 

 for.n {Eus/o?>iias olisci/n/s) the tactile organ takes the 



appearance of a long filament, which is placed underneath 

 the lower jaw, and which ends in an mflated and rayed 

 knob-like phosphorescent mass. 



Another peculiarity now well known in deep-sea fishes 

 is the enormous development of the mouth and stomach 

 of these fish. In the genus Melanocetus and in Chias- 

 modus the capacity of the stomach is such that it can 

 contain prey twice the size of the fish which swallowed it, 

 and perhaps the largest gape of jiws known is that of 

 Ewypharynx pelccanoides. The greatest depth at which 

 a fish was taken during the cruise of the Talisman was 

 4255 metres ; ,the fish was Byihytes crassus : but it will 

 be remembered that during the Chaltengcy Expedition a 

 specimen of Bathyopis ferox was taken at a depth of 

 5000 metres. 



We hope again to have the opportunity of referring to 

 other of the deep-sea forms taken by the Talisman. 



T 



A NCI EN T JAP Am 

 HIS volume contains a literal translation of the oldest 

 Japanese book in existence, accompanied by in- 

 troductions, notes, and appendices, and is beyond 

 doubt the most learned and remarkable work which 

 European scholarship has yet produced from Japan. Of 

 the many important propositions on the early history of 

 the Japanese race established by it we shall have to speak 

 later on ; baf of the work itself it may be said now that 

 the translator claims it to be " the earliest authentic con- 

 nected literary product of that large division of the human 

 race which has been variously denominated Turanian, 

 Scythian, and Altaic, and it even precedes by at least a 

 century the most ancient extant literary compositions of 

 non-Aryan India." Indeed more than this may be said ; 

 for if the claim of Accadian to be an Altaic language be 

 not substantiated, not only the archaic literature of 

 Japan (to which the A'^yVX^' belongs), but also its classical 

 literature, precedes by several centuries the earliest extant 

 do-uments of any other Altaic tongue. This alone would 

 render the work an object of much interest, but it derives 

 additional importance from its contents as well as from 

 the period at which it was written. It is the earliest 

 record of the language, customs, mythology, and history 

 of ancient Japan, and soon after the date of its compila- 

 tion, as Mr. Chamberlain points out, most of the salient 

 features of distinctive Japanese nationality were buried 

 under a superincumbent mass of Chinese culture ; it is 

 therefore to these " Records " and one or two other 

 ancient works that the investigator must look if he \youId 

 not be misled at every step into attributing originality to 

 modern customs and ideas which have simply been bor- 

 rowed wholesale from the neighbouring continent. It 

 appears beyond doubt that, though the work existed in 

 tradition for some years before that period, it was not 

 committed to writing till the year 712 of our era, and 

 from It a picture can be formed of the Japanese of that 

 remote epoch. It is to the sections devoted by the trans- 

 lator to the manners and customs of the ear'y Japanese 

 and their political and social ideas that we propose to 

 direct special attention now. 



As pictured, then, in these "Records," the Japanese 

 of the mythical era had emerged froai the Stone .Age and 

 from the savage state. They were acquainted with the 

 use of iron for weapons of the chase, such as arrows, 

 swords, knives ; but there is a curious silence about 

 ordinary implements, such as axes and saws, though they 

 had the fire-drill, pestle and mortar, wedge, and shuttle 

 for weaving. The art of sailing appears to have been 

 quite unknown, but boats for use on the inland lakes are 

 mentioned. As would naturally be expected, the popula- 

 tion was scattered along the seashore and on the banks 



• Trnnsactions of the Asiatic Society of J a. 



Translation of the •■ Kojiki" 01 



Hall Chamberlain. Yokohama, 



J ._, ^ .,^ \. Supplement. 



irds of Ancient Matters.'' By Basil 



