142 WALKS AND TALKS BY THE SEASIDE. 



are allied to the squids, have shells, and most beautiful ones as well. This 

 specimen is quite pretty, being reddish in color with green eyes, which are 

 rather staring, and thus odd looking, but we must expect to see all sorts of 

 very singular appearing animals that have their home in the great mysterious 

 deep. Our squids are provided with eight arms that grow from the head, 

 and the under side of these arms are provided sucking disks, such as I 

 have figured, with which they attach themselves to any object to which they 

 wish to fasten. 



I never see one of these animals without being reminded of my first 

 experience with a cuttle fish. We are all of us more or less familiar with 

 stories of gigantic cuttle fish, or the octopus ; how huge members of this ge- 

 nus have power to drag, not only men, but ships into the sea and destroy 

 them, although for many years, tales of this description were regarded at best 

 as being simply exagerations, well ascertained facts lately revealed, show 

 that, as far as size goes, there are monster cuttle fish that, if "so disposed, 

 could overpower the largest ship that sailed in the days of which the tales 

 were told. The little adventure of which I speak occurred quite a number of 

 years ago on the island of Key West. I chanced to find myself there just 

 after one of those fearful hurricanes that too often devastate that region. 

 This, however, proved fortunate for me, as not only was the beach strewn 



with many rare and desirable specimens, but the gale had driven many ani- 

 mals that had inhabited deep water hitherto onto the shores, where some of 

 them remained. I was walking along the eastern beach one morning, gath- 

 ing the various objects of interest, when I noticed a whitish sphere protrud- 

 ing from beneath a low ledge of coral rock in a pool of quite deep water 

 near the beach. A long experience with all sorts of animals ought to have 

 taught me caution, but I am afraid it has not, and fear of consequences has 

 never deteired me from investigating quite closely any living thing with which 

 I have desired to become acquainted ; accordingly, this spirit being aroused, 

 I waded into the water, rolled up my sleeves, reached down and promptly 

 grasped the white sphere. It felt soft to the touch and at the same shrank 

 perceptably, and almost as promptly as my hand went down, four long arms, 

 slender and writhing like serpents, came up, glided along my naked arm, 

 then fastened themselves to it. The sensation produced by these cold, slimy 

 tentacles, adhering to the flesh, with at least a hundred sucking disks, was 

 so peculiar that I released my hold of the body of the octopus, for such it 

 proved to be, when, evidently enraged at my invasion into its strong hold, 

 after a sudden attempt to draw me downward, it released its grasp, which it 

 had maintained with the remaining four arms upon the rock, and suddenly 

 seized my other arm with them. 



( TO BE CONTINUED. ) 



