An Army of Tunnies, 
337 
salted, though from Muffett’s directions some skill seems 
to have been required in this preparation. 
“ As porpesses must be baked while they are new, so tunny is 
never good till it have been long pouldred [pickled] with salt, vinegar, 
coriander, and hot spices.” (Page 173.) 
According to Pliny a vast shoal of tunnies arrayed 
themselves against Alexander the Great, and were more 
formidable to his army than Tyrians, Indians, or Persians. 
Du Bartas refers to this incident, but omits to describe 
their mode of warfare:— 
“ Shall I omit the tunnies, that durst meet 
Th’ Eoan monarchs never daunted fleet. 
And beard more bravely his victorious powrs 
Than the defendants of the Tyrian towrs ; 
Or Porus, conquered on the Indian coast; 
Or great Darius, that three battels lost ? ” 
(Page 40.) 
Montaigne attributes mathematical knowledge to this 
fish:— 
“ In the manner of living of the tunnies, we observe a singular 
knowledge of the three parts of mathematicks. As to astrology, they 
teach it men, for they stay in the place where they are surpriz’d by the 
Brumal solstice, and never stir from thence till the next equinox: for 
which reason, Aristotle himself attributes to them this science. As to 
geometry and arithmetick, they always form their body in the figure of 
a cube, every way square, and make up the body of a battalion, solid, 
close and environed round with six equal sides, so that swimming in 
this square order, as large behind as before; whoever in seeing them 
can count one rank, may easily number the whole troop, by reason 
that the depth is equal to the breadth, and the breadth to the length.’ 7 
(Essay liv.) 
The Bonito, or Striped-bellied Tunny, is similar to 
the tunny in form, but inferior in size, Bon - to 
being only thirty inches long. Sir Bichard 
Hawkins, in his description of a voyage to the South Sea, 
speaks of three fish which accompany ships in the 
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