THE VEXED BERMOOTHES. 



259 



And Fire island. These sea eggs detract 

 from the pleasure of bathing in Bermuda 

 waters. They look much like a chestnut 

 burr, but the spines are of shell. When 

 stepped on they enter the flesh and break 

 off and a surgical operation is necessary 

 to remove them. 



Many of the Bermuda fishes are of mar- 

 velous beauty. Facile princeps is the angel 

 fish, with its blue, violet or lavender body 

 and long, graceful fins, flashing at times 

 all the hues of the rainbow. When caught 

 its beauty quickly fades. It is about a 

 foot long and is esteemed a most delicious 

 pan fish. 



There are also the parrot fish, marked 

 with all the gaudy colors of the red parrot ; 

 the fiery red squirrel fish ; and the school- 

 master, so named because its chief char- 

 acteristic is its stripes, loud and gaudy. The 

 amber fish furnish the best sport. They 

 are also known as "floating fish," because 

 they swim near the surface. They appear 

 in many respects much like our bluefish, 

 though they are caught still fishing, with 

 the squid bait. They range from 7 to 10 

 pounds in weight. They bite voraciously 

 and large catches are easily made. 



One of the unique sights of Bermuda is 

 the "Devil's Hole," a small pond having 

 an underground connection with the sea 

 some hundreds of feet distant, and stocked 

 with fishes. Last summer 1,500 groupers, 

 rock fish and redsnappers were put in ^ it. 

 These are deep water fish and the swelling 

 of their air bladder, when brought to the 

 surface, would Lill them were it not punc- 

 tured. It is punctured and they then live 

 and thrive near the surface. The fish are 

 accustomed to visitors, and when one ap- 

 pears they thrust their heads out of water 

 begging for bread. Voracious monsters 

 they are, with red and horrid jaws. The 

 story is told of a luckless dog jumping in 

 among them, when his master threw in 

 some bread, and being dragged beneath the 

 surface never to be seen again. 



Fishing in the Bermudas is done alto- 

 gether with hand lines, and the quality of 

 the sport is judged by the quantity of the 

 catch. The amber fish would, however, 

 give rare sport for the rod and reel. 



Bermuda lobsters differ from those of 

 the North in that they have no claws. They 

 grow to a large size and are esteemed a 

 great delicacy. The Bermuda oyster tastes 

 like the hard clam of the North, though its 

 shell resembles that of the young oyster 

 except that it is thinner and of a greater 

 pearly luster. Bermuda scallops are larger 

 than those of the North and the shell is less 

 corrugated. The body and the eye are 

 both eaten. They taste quite like the scal- 

 lop of the waters about New York. 



The hunter who visits the Bermudas, 

 should lea i his gun at home; he will find 

 no use for it. Song birds abound, but few, 

 if any game birds or water fowl, as far as 

 I could learn, exist there. Snakes are as 

 scarce as the good Saint Patrick said they 

 were in Ireland. The Bermudas are a 

 naval and coaling station of Great Britain. 

 In winter they are the headquarters of the 

 British North Atlantic Squadron ; while 

 one or 2 British regiments are always sta- 

 tioned there. This gives a social life to the 

 islands that visitors find most attractive. 

 The gay uniforms of the soldiers, officers 

 and marines contribute hugely to the bril- 

 liancy of the aspect. 



From New York the Bermudas are easily 

 reached by the well appointed steamers of 

 the Quebec Steamship Company, which, in 

 the season, maintains a 5-day service. The 

 passage takes 2 to 3 days. Recently the 

 Bermudas have become famous as a sum- 

 mer resort, as the temperature, even in 

 mid-summer, is made agreeable by the cool- 

 ing ocean breezes. 



Bermuda houses, almost invariably, are 

 built of coral rock. Scrape off the soil any- 

 where and then, with chisel and saw, cut 

 out and fashion as you will the material 

 before you. "It cuts like cheese, but lasts 

 like iron for things like these," for it 

 quickly hardens on exposure to the air. 

 Great square blocks form the foundation 

 and walls ; while slabs, sawed as thin as 

 slate, are used for the slanting roofs. 



The visitor to the Bermudas is far from 

 the madding throng, his mail comes only 

 once in 5 days, cable rates are almost pro- 

 hibitive, and the newspapers when 5 days 

 old cease to interest. The rest and quiet, 

 therefore, are perfect. 



Teacher — What is that you have drawn 

 on your slate, Tommy? 



Tommy (aged six) — A woman and a 

 house. 



Teacher — But I see only the house. 

 Where is the woman? 



Tommy — Oh, she has gone into the house.. 

 —Rochester Herald. 



