290 THE OCEAN WORLD. 
Naples. In the Ladrone Islands Holothuria guamensis is preferred. 
But nowhere is the Holothuria esteemed of such importance as in 
the Malayan and Chinese seas. In those countries, and on most of 
the shores of the Indian Ocean, the AHolothuria edulis, vulgarly called 
trepang, is eaten with delight. Thousands of junks are annually 
equipped for the trepang fisheries. The Malay fishermen carry to 
this fishery a degree of patience and dexterity truly remarkable. 
Lying down in the fore part of their vessels, and holding in their 
hands a long bamboo terminating in a sharp hook, their eyes, 
accustomed to, this fishing, frequently discover the animal at a 
distance of not less than thirty yards, as it creeps along the surface 
of the submarine rocks or corals. The fisher darts his harpoon at 
this distance, and seldom misses his prey. When the water is shallow, 
that is to say, not more than four or five fathoms deep, divers are 
sent down to obtain. these culinary monsters, who seize them in their 
hands, and in this manner can take five or six atatime. To prepare 
the fish and preserve them for transport to the markets, the Malay 
and Chinese fishermen boil them in water, and flatten them with 
stones. They are then spread out on bamboo mats to dry ; first in 
the sun, and then by smoking them. Thus prepared, they are 
enclosed in sacks, and shipped to the Chinese ports, where they are 
particularly esteemed. This fishery takes place in the months of 
April and May. (Prate IX.) 
In his voyage to the South Pole, Captain Dumont d’Urville, in 
traversing the Chinese seas, had an opportunity of assisting at this 
fishery, which he has described very graphically. We quote the 
passage in which the French navigator relates what he witnessed at 
this curious scene. ‘While the ships were lying quietly at anchor, 
we saw,” he says, “entering the bay, four Malay proas, bearing 
Dutch colours, which dropped their anchors about a cable’s length’ 
from Observatory Islet. The padrones or captains of these vessels 
soon presented their sal utations, and informed me that they had started 
from Macassar at the end of October, with the western monsoon, 
and that they came to fish for Holothuria (trepang) along the coasts 
of New Holland, from Melville Island to the Gulf of Carpentaria, 
where the east wind met them, and assisted their return, when they 
revisited all the points of the coast, anchoring in every bay where 
they hoped to find fish. We were in the first days of April; the east 
monsoon was definitely established; the Malay fishermen were 
returning in their circuit, and in passing, they came to exercise their 
industry in Raffles Bay. An hour after their arrival they were all at 
work, and the shed for the preparation of their fish was established 
