No. 482] THE FLYING-FISH PROBLEM 67 



Among the distinguislied naturalists tlnis rcfcrmi to in su})|)()t( 

 of Mobiuh's theory, Prof. Moseley, l.rinu ..f ili< •( li.dK ni^. r' 

 Exj)e(lition, and Mr. Boulen^rer are promincni ly nicnlidiir.l. I>,nt 

 Moseley, who cannot see the K.rnrnlii.s fla])i.ni<:'. can see ili,- Dac- 

 tylopterids doing so (p. 512): ilic [)()>sil.iliiy of u Inch a<t ixlcnicd 

 by Mobius from personal ohscrvalion as sironi^ly a> m ilic ca>c of 

 Exocootus! Whilst Boulenger merely (piolcd widid ot dtlicrs, 

 he himself retained, then as now, as he intornis nic, an open mind 

 U{)on the cpiestion. 



It is surprising how largely this "general vcniici"" is ndhienced 

 by tlie researches of M(-)l)ins, the very Pn.fcssi.r whose solitary 

 so-called proof is (|nestione.j l.y WInltnan; so we will examine 

 more closely what he say> al)ont ihe muscles. '1 he (|uotanon is 

 continued from '"aloft ui the air,'"' al)ov(\ 



'"The pectoral iiuiscles ol birds (lepres^niii' tlieu' \vniu'> \\eii:li, 

 on an average, one sixth ot the total uciu'ht of the body, the [.ecioral 

 muscles of bats owe thirteenth, the nuiscles of the pecioial fni- of 

 fiying-fish only one ihu-t\ -second.'" 



*If this proves anythin- whi.'li t.. the |.,n'iH.>e ii does n..t — 

 it may jm.ve that, a> flvin--fi>li have >..niewliat les> than half the 

 comparative muscl(> of bats, and i acconluii:' lo aei'oplanisis i eaiuiot, 

 for this reason, fh.theietore bat., whid. hav.^ M.nieuhat le-^ than 

 half the comparativt^ nurscle of birds, cannot tly. 



Or. the other way about: - Hir.ls can fly. Kats. havuio- rather 

 less than half \hv coinpaialiNc nniMh- of bird^, <an iK . thuefoie 



Those are reasonable <ledu( tious. but iherefoie tl\ u,-hsh ( an- 

 not fly" is an unreasonable uuc. ^ 



flying-fi.sh, if they can fly, cannot be cxpivted to llv like eitlu-r 

 hats or birds; ami, I may add, no one thinks or claims th.it tluy 

 do so fly. 



But an even greater claim is made by a.-roplanisis. h is recog- 

 nized that there are two kuids of bM-.l-tli-hi . •'sailinu and •"low- 

 ing," the sailing beinu' urea tly the supei-ior form. >ailers ( an always 



