176 
THE YOUNG SCIENTIST. 
After it was strained and evaporated, or, 
more strictly spealiing, condensed, it was 
mixed with a small quantity of the spirits 
of amm.onia and distilled water, after 
which it was thoroughly ground on a 
slab with a glass muiler. When Nature 
provided this strange, grotesquely-shaped 
creature witli a goodly supply of ink, it 
would seem as though she was mindful 
of the fact that he was not an expert 
swimmer, and as for turning short curves 
and corners that was an impossibility, but 
to give him a show to escape from his 
enemies, she provided him with this ink- 
supply, and right well he knows how to 
use it, for the instant his pursuers are 
closing on him, he lets go the ink which 
is stored up in his funnel with such force 
that in an instant it spreads out before in 
the form of an intense black cloud, so 
that while his pursuers are wondering 
wdiat has burst, he beats a hasty re- 
treat backwards through the ink -cloud, 
and down to the dark and deep waters of 
Mother Ocean. I strongly suspect that 
this inky fluid is very repugnant to fish, 
as they show a strong inclination to avoid 
it under all circumstances ; perhaps it 
has a somewhat similar effect on flsh that 
the thick and milky liquid which a toad 
will eject when attacked by a dog or cat, 
causing them to feel sick and of a retir- 
ing turn of mind. All the large kinds of 
free swimming and edible fish are pas- 
sionately fond of the ink-pots, and why 
should they not be, for is he not a soft, 
sweet, and toothsome morsel ? This be- 
ing the case, he is in great demand as a 
bait for our game marine fishes, such as 
striped bass, sea bass, weak-flsh, etc. By 
the mackerel fishers he is considered the 
very best of bait, when cut up into a fine 
hash. This hash is thrown broadcast 
over the water, till the mackerel are 
"chummed" together, after which an 
immensely long net is run around them, 
and they are prisoners. The squid, by 
which name it is known in our markets, 
always brings a high price, as a favorite 
fish-bait. Don't make the mistake of 
thinking that fish are the only creatures 
that like and eat this odd-looking, and to 
very many, repulsive-looking creature, 
for such is not the case, as the Chin- 
ese, Japanese, Portuguese, Spaniards, and 
French are all excessively fond of Mr. 
Ink-Pot, and pay high prices for him. 
The Portuguese and Spanish cooks are 
very particular when purchasing this, 
fish that he contain a fair quantity of the 
ink, from which, when combined with 
wine, a dressing or sauce is made, that is- 
anything but inviting-looking, as far as. 
color goes, but to the taste is really enjoy- 
able. I have known the squid to bring as. 
high as from 75 cents to $1.00 per pound 
retail, and hard to obtain at those prices, 
I stated that this fish was destitute of any 
bony structure ; perhaps that was hardly 
correct, for it is provided wit]i a curiously- 
shaped bone, which in form strongly 
resembles a quill-pen, from which fact it 
has been called the " pen " (Fig. 2). This. 
pen is transparent and flex- 
ible; the material closely re- 
sembles that of a goose-quilL 
The well-known "cuttle-fish., 
bone" used by bird fanciers 
is also a product of a fish 
closely related to this fish.. 
During the spring months im- 
mense quantities of the eggs 
of the ink-pot are cast upon 
the southern shores of Long' 
Island. These are so puzzling 
to the ordinary investigator 
that after many attempts to 
determine their nature, he 
concludes that they are one of 
the strange, unfathomable 
mysteries of the ocean. These 
egg masses, when first ex- 
huded, are not more than one- 
third of the size and weight of 
the squid ; but after being in j 
the water a few hours they | 
swell to more than ten times i 
j; the size of the parent. When j 
■J/ a youngster it was a great 
mystery to me how frogs and 
ink-pots managed to deposit 
ggs which were, in size, often 
larger than themselves. To 
convey a clear idea of the egg clusters of 
the ink-pot I have made a pen sketch. 
Fig. 3. These eggs are very easy to de- 
velop if one has even a very small aquaria 
or a tub full of good salt water. To do 
Fig. 2. 
masses of 
ten times 
