360 REVIEWS — DR. LANKESTEr's LECTURES. 



retired it leaves an impression of two holes united, something like a 

 keyhole. It is, however, almost useless to attempt to dig them up, 

 they hack away from you so skillfully. After many vain efforts to 

 secure one of these creatures alive, I mentioned my failures to the 

 late Professor Edward Forbes. ' Oh,' he said, with a waggish smile, 

 < there is nothing easier : all you have to do is to put a little salt over 

 their holea, and they will come out.' I remembered, you know, the 

 story of putting salt on a bird's tail, and although I resolved secretly to 

 try my friend's plan, it was so- simple, I had not the courage to tell 

 him that I would. I had, however, no sooner got to the seaside than 

 I quietly stole to the pantry and pocketed some salt, and then went 

 alone, at low tide, to the sandy shore. As soon as I espied a hole, I 

 looked round, for I almost fancied I heard my friend chuckle over 

 my shoulder ; however, nobody was there, and down went a pinch of 

 salt over the hole. "What I now beheld almost staggered me. Was 

 it the ghost of some razor-fish whose head I had chopped off in dig- 

 ging that now rose before me to arraign me for my malice ? or was it 

 a real live razor-fish that now raised its long shell at least half out of 

 the sand ? I grasped it, fully expecting it would vanish, but I found 

 I had won my prize. It was a real solid specimen of the species 

 Solen maximus that I had in my hand. I soon had a number of 

 others, which were all carried home in triumph. Of course there 

 were more than were required for science, and, at the suggestion of a 

 Scotch friend, the animals not wanted were made into soup. When 

 the soup was brought to table, our Scotch friend vowed it particularly 

 fine, and ate a basin with at least twenty razor-fish in it. One table- 

 spoonful satisfied the ladies, whilst myself and an English friend 

 declared — against our conscience I do verily believe — that we had never 

 eaten any thing more excellent. I counted the number of the crea- 

 tures I was able to swallow ; it amounted to exactly three ! After a 

 tumbler of whiskey and water — taken, of course, medicinally — ar- 

 rangements were made for a dredge in the morning. The Scotchman 

 was up at five, but I and my English friend could not make our 

 appearance. Nightmare and other symptoms of indigestion had 

 fairly upset us for anything so ticklish as a dredging excursion. Now, 

 I do not wish to say anything against razor-fish as an article of diet, 

 but from what I have told you, they would seem to possess an amount 

 of resistance to the ordinary digestive activity of the stomach that 

 would render it highly desirable to ensure, before taking them, such a 



