Mollusks. 5431 



Yarrell or Jenyns, — a shallow furrow ran along the mesial line of the back, from 

 the second dorsal fin to the origin of the caudal.— Lester Lester ; Langton Maltravers, 

 December 10, 1856. 



Occurrence of the Short Sun-fish on the Coast of Galway. — On the 3rd of 

 September last, about three miles out at sea from Roundstone, County Galway, 

 Ireland, T met with a specimen of the short sun-fish (Orthagoriscus mola), of which 

 I obtained a good view. The fish, which apparently measured about four feet across, 

 was floating at the surface on its side, looking more dead than alive, and my attention 

 was directed to the spot by a large gull, which hovered above, greedily gazing upon 

 the ample space of white belly there displayed. I fired a close shot at the sun-fish, 

 but, owing to the high sea then running, it sunk before I was able to secure it with a 

 gaff. One of my boatmen at once pronounced the fish a sun-fish ; he also stated that 

 he had seen many of them in that neighbourhood during his lifetime, and he 

 afterwards drew upon the sand so good a representation of the short sun-fish as 

 to preclude the possibility of a mistake about the species. In Yarrell's ' British 

 Fishes,' I find the following note: — "The sun -fish of the Irish coast, particularly 

 on the west coast, is the basking shark." On the Galway coast the basking shark is 

 certainly known by the name of sun-fish, but it is now evident that, besides the 

 basking shark, one at least of the true sun-fishes frequents the west coast of 

 Ireland. — Henry Evans ; Darley Abbey, Derby, December 17, 1856. 



A Schoolboy^s Amusement in Southeys Days. — One very odd amusement, which 

 I never saw or heard of elsewhere, was greatly in vogue at this school. It was per- 

 formed with snail shells, by placing them against each other, point to point, and 

 pressing till the one was broken in, or sometimes both. This was called conquering; 

 and the shell which remained unhurt acquired esteem and value in proportion to the 

 number over which it had triumphed, an accurate account being kept. A great con- 

 queror was prodigiously prized and coveted, so much so, indeed, that two of this 

 description would seldom have been brought to contest the palm if both possessors had 

 not been goaded to it by reproaches and taunts. The victor had the number of his 

 opponents added to its own ; thus when one conqueror of fifty conquered another 

 which had been as often victorious, it became conqueror of an hundred and one. Yet 

 even in this, reputation was sometimes obtained upon false pretences. I found a boy 

 one day, who had fallen in with a great number of young snails, so recently hatched 

 that the shells were still transparent, and he was besmearing his fingers by crushing 

 these poor creatures one after another against his conqueror, counting away with the 

 greatest satisfaction at his work. He was a good-natured boy, so that I, who had 

 been bred up to have a sense of humanity, ventured to express some compassion for 

 the snails, and to suggest that he might as well count them and lay them aside un- 

 hurt. He hesitated, and seemed inclined to assent, till it struck him as a point of 

 honour or of conscience, and then he resolutely said no! that would not do, for he 

 could not then fairly say he had conquered them. There is a surprising difference 

 of strength in these shells, and that not depending upon the size or species, I mean 

 whether yellow, brown or striped. It might partly be estimated by the appearance of 



