LECTURE XL 
173 
Indian divers become so expert as to be able to 
continue under water for the space of six or seven 
minutes. 
This reminds us of the famous Sicilian diver 
mentioned by Kircher and others, who could re- 
main so long under water, that he obtained the 
popular title of Fish. Frederic, King of Sicily, 
unthinkingly tempted him by the offer of a golden 
cup thrown into the sea, to dive near the gulph of 
Charybdis : he made two attempts, and each time 
astonished the spectators by the time he remain- 
ed under water ; but in the third attempt he was, 
as is supposed, caught in the eddy of the whirl- 
pool, and never again appeared. An ingenious 
French naturalist, whom I before have had occa- 
sion to mention, is of opinion that he was caught 
by a Colossal Cuttle-Fish!!! The accounts how- 
ever of the Sicilian writers are against this suppo- 
sition, since they affirm that his body , was thrown 
up on the coast, at above thirty miles distance 
from the spot where he descended. With respect 
to the animal inhabiting the pearl-shell, it is (we 
know) popularly called the pearl-oy^^er; but in 
reality belongs to the Linn^an genus Mytylus, 
