CHITLAC AND KILTAN 171 



Our next line of soundings took us to Chitlac, but 

 here again it was impossible to land on account of 

 bad weather, so we went on to Calicut for supplies, 

 and on the run down the Malabar coast we trawled 

 with most satisfactory results in 45 fathoms, bringing 

 up a deck-load of fishes and crabs and mollusks, 

 many of which were new to science. Among the 

 fishes there were nine specimens of the little Minotis 

 inermis mentioned in a former chapter, eight of which 

 were overgrown with the commensal polyps (Stylactis 

 minoi) that are never found elsewhere ; for not a 

 single polyp of this species was detected on any 

 of the hundreds of specimens of other animals that 

 came up in the trawl. Of the many kinds of mollusks 

 the most attractive was a fine new species of Murex, 

 which Mr Edgar Smith has named Murex malabaricus. 

 We have since, however, found the same species in 

 the Bay of Bengal. 



After leaving Calicut, where we had more than 

 our share of foul weather, and where the ship took 

 on such abominable fits of rolling as to quite stop 

 my work, we went to the island of Kiltan. Here 

 we found the inhabitants in much distress and 

 anxiety, for not only had the recent storms destroyed, 

 so they said, 8000 of their coconut trees, but the 

 boat which had taken a large cargo of their coir to 

 the mainland, and was expected back with a much- 

 needed supply of rice, was overdue, and in such 



