218 Hick: A Ramble in the Isle of Lindisfarne. 
Fish,’ and he drew my attention to its ‘hands,’ the pectoral fins 
with which it walks. I was much struck with the numerous 
sharp little teeth at either side of its throat aperture, and also 
with the marvellous ring and staple arrangement of its spines. 
I dissected it afterwards with great interest, whilst its little 
heart was convulsively beating, having cut an artery in the 
process. It occurred to me that possibly the heart in a drowned 
man might be started beating by the severance of an artery, 
provided, of course, coagulation of the blood had not taken 
place. 
The liver and the heart were covered with patches of a sort 
of yellow granulation, which cut like an unripe stone pear. 
Was this a sort of fish bibercaloeis And was it the cause of 
its death? Hanging to the walls of the jaw-pouches were 
numerous yellow things, difficult to describe, about 14 to ¥ an 
inch long, with no visible structure, and highly contracted, like 
drawn-up elastic. They were too opaque for my microscope, 
and having no sharp razor nor methylated spirits, I could keep 
no specimen, much to my disappointment. However, I secured 
a good skeleton of the fish. I believe that they were some 
species of parasite, embedded probably in the skin by powerful 
hooks, as I found it impossible to detach them without cutting. 
They may have belonged to one of the well-known forms of 
parasitic life, or perhaps they were an unknown species, for 
I believe that the diseases and parasites of fish are far from 
having been as yet thoroughly investigated. I returned, exult- 
ing, to the little inn, and, after reducing the ‘Angler’ to a 
skeleton, as I have described, I mounted some specimens of the 
Sertularida and the ee and of the sponges. And 
this was far more deligh an even the ramble itself. 
e 
I counted fourteen Suenedie puree fully extended at one 
time on a slide. 1ey were most amusing as they jumped 
about and suddenly contracted into their cups. Some of the 
empty campanularian cups were transformed into elegant vases, _ 
by bright yellow diatoms, which were attached to them in a sort 
of stalactite arrangement. The central ‘stalk’ was orname ented 
by fans of yellow diatoms at intervals. What looked like 
a bush of tiny little Vorticella attached to a ‘stalk’ of 
a Sertularian were particularly lively. I introduced Peter, the 
and delight, to this world of microscopic life. And thus was 
brought to a close a long interesting ramble in one of the — 
smallest and one of the most interesting, historically speaking, 
| ae the islands of Her barees: Aa 
