OCEAN FISH AND OCEAN FISHING 91 



In Sydney Harbour I once swam up against a 

 large specimen, and half my body was so benumbed 

 that I with difficulty got ashore. When I tore off 

 the tentacles, they left long red lines on the flesh, 

 which ached and stung for many days. 



Now I must discourse about the Gulf-weed 

 {Sargassuin bacciferuni), which is carried into the 

 North Atlantic by the Gulf Stream. 



When Columbus, a thousand miles to the west 

 of the Canary Islands, found the ocean covered 

 with weed, no wonder his crew were alarmed, and 

 imagined they had reached the ultima thule of 

 navigation, and that the weeds concealed submerged 

 rocks or land. 



This was the famous Gulf-weed, which gives its 

 name to a vast extent of salt water, known as the 

 Sargasso Sea. Mysteriously it floats, unattached 

 to the bottom, in relatively shallow water, whose 

 soundings seldom give more than a hundred 

 fathoms, a pretty berried plant, not unlike the 

 branches and leaves of the mimosa. It does not 

 look like seaweed, resembling more a land plant, 

 and is of a vivid olive-green colour, but though 

 often carefully bottled in salt water and brought 

 home, the tint fades, and gives one a poor idea of 

 its beauty cii masse. 



At first, isolated groups of it are passed, then it 



