OF FISH. 
293 
spots; there are some however, whose principal colour is 
a clear blue. This fish inhabits the Mediterranean sea: 
and at Marseilles, Sardinia, and Venice, is common in 
the markets with other small fish. It attains to the 
length of six or eight inches; the flesh is lean, therefore 
not much esteemed. It lives near the shores, among the 
rocks and weeds; and feeds on crabs and small shell fish. 
Its scales are hardly visible. Some naturalists describe 
this fish as having two dorsal fins; while others say it has 
but one. This contradiction must arise from these fins 
being sometimes united by a membrane, and sometimes 
not. 
The Dace. ( Cyprmus .) This fish has a lengthened 
body, small head, middling-sized scales, gray fins, forked 
tail, and the lateral line curved downwards. The fish is 
of a silver colour, except the back, which is brownish, 
and rounded. The pupil of the eye is black, iris yellow; 
and near the organs of hearing and respiration. The 
aperture of the mouth is middle-sized; the coverings of 
the gills are two thin laminae. All the fins are white. 
This fish is found in the south of Germany, as well as in 
France, Italy, and England. 
Great Cuttle-Fish. (Sepia. PI. 51.) This curious 
and singular creature, is furnished with eight arms or 
claws, interspersed on the interior side with little round 
serrated cups, by the contraction of which, the animal 
lays fast hold oi any thing that comes in its way. Besides 
these eight arms, it has two others longer than the pre- 
ceding, and also pedunculated. The mouth is situated 
in the centre, and is horny, and hooked like the bill of a 
parrot. The eyes are below, and surrounded with several 
silvery rings; they are as large as the eyes of a calf, but 
are very prominent, and rather resemble the eyes of the 
crab. The body is of a reddish brown colour, nearly 
cylindrical. The belly below is equal, soft, smooth, ob- 
long-round, of an ash and faintly -yellowish colour: about 
the middle of the upper part of the body, there is a fin, 
like those of fishes, composed of a softish cartilaginous 
substance^ spread out widely on both sides, and decreas- 
ing towards the tail till it ends in a point, like the broad 
2 c 2 
