270 
LITTLE FOLKS 
Well, so they are ! No one ever imagined such wonders as are 
found in the sea every day. 
These beauties, and a great many more that I haven't room to 
describe, belong to the strange families in the sea. And all the 
beautiful hanging fringes are so many fishing lines hung out to 
catch little fish and carry them to a hungry mouth. 
I think the oddest of these creatures is called Venus Girdle, 
It looks like a ribbon — long and narrow, of blue and silver 
color, and fringed on both edges. 
See his picture on preceding page. 
It is found in the Mediterranean Sea, and is often five feet 
long and only two inches 
wide. It curls and un- 
winds itself in the water, 
and is a beautiful thing to 
see. In some places, it is 
called the Sea Sabre. 
The last picture of 
these beautiful creatures is 
called the Berce, though 
sailors sometimes call 
them Sea Cucumbers, a 
shameful name for such a 
beauty. 
Here it is. 
The body is of a 
pale rose color, covered 
with small red spots. It 
has fine fringes down its 
sides which vibrate in the 
water, and produce the ef- 
fect of all the colors in the 
rainbow. It looks like 
glass, and changes its form, 
sometimes swelling up like 
a ball and then reversing 
itself to look like a bell, and 
at other times long, and as 
it is in the picture. 
It has a large end at its lower extremity, and a monstrous 
