215 



length of the fiih, being formed of feveral 

 fine cartilages, and a thin tranfparent mem- 

 brane not unlike the wing of a bat. At the 

 infertion, near the gills, they are narrow, 

 but become confiderably wider towards their 

 extremities. When ufed in flying they 

 are raifed from the fide, and expand- 

 ed, by the cartilages feparating from each 

 other, and ftretchingout the membrane which 

 covers them. They are not connected with 

 the body by extenfive mufcular infertions ; but 

 are united by a ligamentous membrane. Two 

 fmall mufcles pafs into each wing, terminating 

 in ftrong ligaments. Thefe ferve to give 

 them the command of the wing, but are not 

 calculated to fupport long and powerful ac- 

 tion. The fifh is about the fize of a herring* 

 They are caught, in great numbers, near Bar- 

 badoes, where they are pickled, and falted, and 

 ufed as a very common food. 



The day before we made the land we 

 met with fhoals of flying fifh of much fmaller 

 fize than thofe we had commonly feen — not 

 larger, indeed, than fprats. On rifing out of 

 the water, in large bodies at a time, they caufed 



J* 4 



