The Baleful Moon 263 



are exceptionally so. I have known, for instance, 

 a bonito hung up under a boat where the moon's 

 rays could not possibly have reached it for more than 

 an hour, to become utterly unfit for food, having a 

 most foul taste, while it smelt as fresh as ever. This 

 poisonous action of the moon upon raw flesh or fish is 

 derided by some as being a fable, as also is the painful 

 affliction known to seamen as moon-blindness ; but 

 there are certainly no two facts better known to, 

 or more firmly established among, deep-water sailors 

 than these. 



The Mackerel is fairly plentiful on the American 

 coasts, though not in such amazing numbers as over 

 here. Not that they need it, having such stupendous 

 abundance of other fish. 



It is there salted down in kits and sent all over 

 the country, but salted Mackerel needs an American 

 palate, educated to the flavour of brine, to appreciate 

 it. I have before noted how greedily all the Mackerel 

 family absorb salt, making it almost impossible, 

 once the salt has entered the tissues of the fish, to 

 extract it again so as to make the fish eatable. But, 

 after all, that is purely a matter of taste, and it is 

 certain that salted Mackerel are in high favour with 

 our cousins oversea. 



And now we come to the consideration of the 

 giant Mackerel known as the Sword-fish, or Lance-fish, 

 as he should more properly be called, since the bone 

 of the upper jaw which is elongated into a weapon is 

 rounded and tapering to a point, much more like a 

 lance than is the flat weapon known as a sword. It 

 is somewhat of a relief to take up the history of a 

 creature with some individuality, after dealing with 

 fish that congregate in countless millions like the 

 herrings and mackerel, and certainly among all fish 



