MOLLUSCA— NAUTILUS. 759 



body is of a reddish brown color, nearly cylindrical. The belly below is 

 equal, soft, smooth, oblong-round, of an ash and faintly yellowish color ; 

 about the middle of the upper part of the body, there is a fin like those of 

 fishes, composed of a softish cartilaginous substance, spread out widely on 

 both sides, and decreasing towards the tail, till it ends in a point, like the 

 broad fins of the ray fish ; by means of this fin, it moves itself in swimming, 

 having no other membrane for that purpose. From this pointed termina- 

 tion of the tail, the French call it the sea-spider, although it has scarcely 

 any resemblance to the spider ; but rather, with respect to the head, 

 approaches to the shape of the star-fish. At any rate, they are very formida- 

 ble animals. With their arms and trunks they fasten themselves, to resist 

 the motion of the waves. The females lay their eggs upon seaweed and 

 plants, in clusters like bunches of grapes. Immediately after they are laid, 

 they are white, and the males pass over and impregnate them with a black 

 liquor, after which they grow larger and resemble black grapes. On open- 

 ing one of the eggs, the embryo cuttle is found alive. The noise of a cuttle- 

 fish, on being dragged out of the water, resembles the grunting of a boar. 

 When the male is pursued by a sea-wolf, or other ravenous fish, he shuns 

 the danger by stratagem. He squirts out a black liquor, by which thcAvater 

 becomes as black as ink, and under shelter of this, he bafiies the pursuit of 

 his enemy. This black liquor is elaborated in a particular gland. The 

 Romans used it as ink ; and it is said to be an ingredient in the composition 

 of Indian ink. There is a bone in this animal which is converted into that 

 useful article of stationary called pounce, and is also used by silversmiths to 

 form moulds. This fish was much esteemed by the ancients, and is still 

 eaten in the hot countries bordering on the Mediterranean. 



THE NAUTILUS. 1 



This animal inhabits a shell which resembles that of a large snail, but is 

 generally six or eight inches across ; within, it is divided into forty parti- 

 tions, that communicate with each other by doors, if we may so call them, 

 through which one could not thrust a goose quill ; almost the whole internal 

 part of the shell is filled by the animal, the body of which, like its habita- 

 tion, is divided into as many parts as there are chambers in its shell; all the 

 parts of its body communicate with each other, through the doors or open- 

 ings, by a long vessel, which runs from the head to the tail; thus the 

 body of the animal, if taken out of the shell, may be likened to a number of 

 soft bits of flesh, of which there are forty threaded upon a string. From this 



^ Nautilus Pompilius, Lis. Shell disciform, spiral, multilocular, with simple walls ; 

 turns contiguous, the last covering the rest; transverse septa, concave externally, perfo- 

 rated in the disc ; the margins entire. 



