Class IV. OPAH DOREE. 301 



horizontally ; a little behind their insertion the 

 back fin takes its original, where it is about 

 seven inches high, but slopes away very sud- 

 denly, running down very near the tail, and at 

 its termination becomes a little broader; the 

 belly fins are very strong, and placed near the 

 middle of the body; a narrow fin also runs 

 from the anus to the tail. All the fins, and 

 also the tail, are of a fine scarlet; but the 

 colors and beauty of the rest of the body, which 

 is smooth and covered with almost impercepti- 

 ble scales, beggars all description; the upper 

 part being a kind of bright green, variegated 

 with whitish spots, and enriched with a shining 

 golden hue, like the splendor of a peacock's 

 feather; this, by degrees, vanishes in a bright 

 silvery, and near the belly the gold again predo- 

 minates in a lighter ground than on the back.'* 



. 



