BEAUTY OF FISHES. 
289 
or Long-jaw. They are fond of congregating in little 
parties, containing from two or three to a dozen, 
skimming leisurely along near the surface, or darting 
so swiftly as to shoot out of water. The hinder 
part of the body and the tail maintain a constant 
wriggling, or uniform lateral serpentine motion. I 
have procured specimens of these fishes by the aid of 
,my fowling-piece, killing two or three at one dis- 
charge of small shot. 
THE SPRAT. 
Another fish common in shallow water is the 
beautiful little Sprat, a small species of Clupea ; it 
congregates in large shoals over the sandy bottom, 
or, as caprice may dictate, resorts in smaller numbers 
to the fissures and caverns of rocks. A great many 
are taken with the casting-net to be used as bait, 
and the Pelican makes these shoals his standard 
food. But their most terrific enemies are the difierent 
kinds of Jack (CamTZic), which attack and “beat” 
them with such ferocity, that, in their frantic en- 
deavours to escape, the whole shoal of Sprats will 
often rush high and dry upon the sand. The species 
appears to be the Harengula clupeola of M. Valen- 
ciennes. 
BEAUTY OF FISHES. 
The beauty and gorgeousness of Fishes in the 
tropical seas have often been admired. These 
crown, and lateral line, brilliant emerald green, iridescent. Lower 
parts silvery, with a most brilliant opalescence on tbe sides. Fins 
hyaline, bluish when in the water. Length eighteen inches. 
O 
