240 On the Economical Uses of some species of Testacea. 



be put to, is the making of musical horns or trumpets of it, and for 

 this purpose it has long been used by the natives of Africa and India, 

 and even long before the christian era it was thus employed by the 

 inhabitants of the countries bordering on the Mediterranean. By 

 the ancient Greeks it was universally used for giving signals in war. 

 On the discovery of the Society Islands, it was found to be used in 

 war, by the native priests on solemn occasions, and by the heralds 

 in their ships ; it was, in fact, the royal and religious instrument of 

 music, and only made use of as such. The largest shells were se- 

 lected for the purpose, which in general are about one foot in length. 

 They made a perforation about an inch in diameter, near the apex, 

 and into this they inserted a bamboo cane about three feet in length, 

 which was secured by binding it to the shell by fine cocoa nut braid. 

 The whole was made air tight with the gum of the breadfruit tree. 

 The sound is described as being extremely loud, but the most dis- 

 mal and monotonous that it is possible to imagine. As late as the 

 last century it was used on board of ships trading to the West Indies 

 or South America instead of a speaking trumpet. A species was 

 also used (and perhaps still is) in Barbadoes, but whether the present 

 one, we cannot from the description determine ; it served instead of 

 a bell to call the slaves to their work, and sounded so loud, that on 

 a calm morning it might be heard above a mile off. The apex was 

 merely broken, and then blown through. The fish was eaten, and 

 divers were regularly employed in catching it. They were generally 

 met with in about six fathom water, but after heavy rains they were 

 found at the mouths of the water courses, feeding on the garbage 

 washed down to them. If the water was dimpled so that the bottom 

 could not be seen, the divers poured a spoonful of oil on the surface, 

 which calmed it sufficiently for their purpose. When the tail part, 

 which was somewhat gritty and sandy, was taken away, the rest of 

 the fish tasted like " tripe, but shorter, sweeter, and more luscious." 

 It is this shell which is generally represented in the hands of Triton 

 in pictures, and whence its trivial name ;* and from the use to which 



* Thus Ovid, speaking of Neptune — 



— "supraque profundum 

 Extantem, atque humeros innato murice tectum 

 Cceruleum Tritona vocat, conchsque sonaci 

 Inspirare jubet, fluctusque et flumina signo 

 Jam revocare dato, cava buccina sumitur illi 

 Tortalis in latum quae turbine crescit ab imo." 



Ovid) Metamorph. lib. I. 



