LABYKINTHIFORM: PHAEXNaEALS. 343 



on the ground by means of the sharp fins, which serve 

 them in lieu of feet ; thus these anabases .set that Greek 

 adage at defiance, which says, OaXdrno^ ewv firj-rroTe 

 Xepa-aio'i yimj, ' let him that is of the water remain in 

 the water.' The ophiocephalus, another subgenus of 

 these camel-fish, have scaly heads like serpents, and 

 alone, of fish, no spinous rays to support the fins. Se- 

 veral species have been noticed. Of one of these, called 

 barca, Mr. Buchanan observes that it lives in holes ex- 

 cavated in the vertical banks of the Bramapoutra, and 

 only puts forth its head while on the watch for prey. 

 This barca he describes as a disagreeable creature to 

 look at, in spite of its pleasing colours. Unlike the 

 anabas, which is always a very small fish, the barca at- 

 tains sometimes five feet in length : it is considered as 

 delicate food, and when intended for table, is cut up 

 into segments, which are only marketable while they 

 writhe. 



To this family belongs the celebrated gourami, which 

 is still more highly prized by adepts in gastronomy than 

 even mullet or turbot. Commerson testifies — and a 

 Frenchman's taste may be implicitly relied on here — 

 that he never partook of anything more exquisite ia the 

 way of fish, whether derived from the sea or from fresh 

 water ; he adds, that the Dutch in Bavaria rear them in 

 large earthen vessels, renewing the water daily, and feed- 

 ing them entirely on fresh- water plants, of which pistia 

 natans is the chief. 



The interest attaching to these curious creatures, from 

 their wonderful structure and not less singular habits, is 

 enhanced by the fact that they were quite as well and 

 accurately known by ancient observers as, after many 

 ages of oblivion, they have again become, withia the pe- 

 riod of the last fifty years. Theophrastus enters into 

 such details relative to some members of the group, that 

 there seems little danger of mistake in applying them to 



M 2 



