THE DESTRUCTIVE PRINCIPLE. - 309 



with a crumpled paper or a cork, which does temporary duty for a mouse. When the animal 

 has accustomed itself to chase and catch the artificial fish, and to give it into the hand of its 

 master, the teacher extends his instructions by drawing the leathern image smartly into the 

 water by means of a string, and encouraging his pupil to plunge into the stream after the lure 

 and bring it ashore. As soon as the young Otter yields the leathern prey, it is rewarded by 

 some dainty morsel which its teacher is careful to keep at hand, and soon learns to connect the 

 two circumstances together. 



Having become proficient in the preliminary instructions, the pupil is further tested by 

 the substitution of a veritable, biit a dead fish, in lieu of the manufactured article, and is taught 

 to chase, capture, and yield the fish at the command of its master. A living fish is then affixed 

 to a line in order to be brought by the Otter from the water in which it is permitted to swim ; 

 and lastly, the pupil is taught to pursue and capture living fish, which are thrown into the 

 water before its eyes. The remaining point of instruction is to take the so-far trained animal 

 to the water-side, and induce it to chase and bring to shore the inhabitants of the stream, as 

 they rove free and unconstrained in their native element. 



In many parts of the world the Otter is admirably trained for this purpose, and is taught 

 to aid its master, not only by capturing single fish, but by driving whole shoals of fishes into 

 the ready nets. 



When in pursuit of its finny prey, the Otter displays a grace and power which cannot be 

 appreciated without ocular investigation. The animal glides through the watery element with 

 such consummate ease and swiftness, and bends its pliant body with such flexible undulations, 

 that the quick and wary fish are worsted in their own art, and fall easy victims to the Otter's 

 superior aquatic powers. So easily does it glide into the water, that no sound is heard, and 

 scarcely a ripple seen to mark the time or place of its entrance ; and when it emerges upon the 

 shore, it withdraws its body from the stream with the same noiseless ease that characterizes its 

 entrance. The Otter is a playful creature, and is very fond of engaging in mock aquatic 

 combats, which display the extraordinary powers of the creature to the very best advantage. 

 When on shore, the Otter can proceed at a considerable pace, and when in haste, employs a 

 curious ' ' loping ' ' gallop as its means of progression. 



During the progress of this work, several allusions have been made to the destructive 

 principle, as illustrated in the character of certain animals, and a few suggestions have been 

 offered as to its origin, its manifestation, and its object. The subject is too deep in its purport 

 and too wide in its bearings to be comprehended within the limits of a single article, and it 

 must therefore be resumed from time to time, as its various phases are exemplified by the 

 nature of the various creatures which draw the breath of life. 



As in the animals which have already been mentioned the principle of terrestrial destruc- 

 tion has been manifested, so we find a further development of the same idea in the Otter, the 

 destroyer of the waters. In order that we may rightly appreciate the part which the Otter 

 plays in the great and ever-changing drama of Nature, it needs that we should as far as possible 

 place ourselves in the position of the creatures among whom its destructive mission is fulfilled. 



A shoal of fish is swimming quietly through the clear stream, thinking of nothing but 

 themselves, their food, and their physical enjoyment of existence. Suddenly from some 

 unknown sphere, of which they can form no true conception, comes flashing among them a 

 strange and wondrous being, from whose presence they flee in instinctive terror. Flight is in 

 vain from the dread pursuer, which seizes one of their companions in its deadly grasp, and in 

 spite of the resistance of the struggling prey, bears it away into an unknown realm, whose 

 wonders their dim sight cannot penetrate, and whose atmosphere is too ethereal for their imper- 

 fect frames to breathe and live. Ever and anon the terrible pursuer is mysteriously among 

 them, like the destroying angel among the Egyptians, and, as often as it is seen, snatches away 



