Start Point in 1864. Attention was first drawn to a huge dark object on
the water. On a boat being sent out, it was soon discovered to be the
back fin of a very large fish, apparently asleep. A very exciting chase
commenced, extending over an hour, the crew meanwhile battling with
harpoons, boat-hooks, &c.; the fish trying several times to upset the
boat by getting his back under it. At length a line was thrown over its
head, and the fish, being weakened by the struggle, was towed alongside
the yacht, hoisted on board, and slaughtered. Yarrell, in his work on
British Fishes, states the largest Sun-fish to be about 3 cwt., but the
above specimen weighed nearly 6 cwt. Sun-fish are found occasionally in
the tropical seas of large dimensions, but those found in the Channel
seldom if ever exceed from 1 cwt. to 2 cwt. The peculiarities in regard
to this fish are, that it has no bones, but the whole of the formation
is of cartilage, which can easily be cut with a knife. The skin is
cartilage of about an inch and a-half thick, under which there is no
backbone or ribs. This specimen was of extraordinary dimensions--5 ft.
10 in. in length, and 7 ft. from the tip of the dorsal to the point of
the anal fin.
The "Courrier de Sagon" brings, as a contribution to Natural History,
the not very credible-sounding description of a fish called "Ca-oug"
in the Anamite tongue, which is said to have saved the lives already
of several Anamites; for which reason the King of Anam has invested it
with the name of "Nam hai dui bnong gnan" (Great General of the South
Sea). This fish is said to swim round ships near the coast, and, when it
sees a man in the water, to seize him with his mouth, and to carry him
ashore. A skeleton of this singular inhabitant of the deep is to be seen
at Wung-tau, near Cape St. James. It is reported to be thirty-five feet
in length, to have tusks "almost like an elephant," very large eyes, a
black and smooth skin, a tail like a lobster, and two "wings" on its
back.[15]
The Grouper must be a voracious fish, for we read of a specimen being
caught off the coast of Queensland, which is thus described:--"It was
7 ft. long, 6 ft. in circumference at its thickest part, and its head
weighed 80 lb. When opened, there were found in its stomach two broken
bottles, a quart pot, a preserved milk tin, seven medium-sized crabs; a
piece of earthenware, triangular in shape, and three inches in length,
incrusted with oyster shells, a sheep's head, some mutton and beef
bones, and some loose oyster shells. The spine of a skate was imbedded
in the Grouper's liver."
The Double-fish, here represented, is a pair of Cat-fish, which were
taken alive in a shrimp-net, at the mouth of Cape Fear River, near
Fort Johnston. North Carolina, in 1833, and presented to Professor
Silliman. One of them is three and a-half, and the other two and a-half
inches long, including the tail--the smallest emaciated, and of sickly
appearance. They are connected in the manner of the Siamese Twins, by
the skin at the breast, which is marked by a dark streak at the line of
union. The texture and colour otherwise of this skin is the same as that
of the belly. The mouth, viscera, &c., were entire and perfect in each
fish; but, on withdrawing the entrails, through an incision made on one
side of the abdomen, the connecting integument was found to be hollow.
A flexible probe was passed through from one to the other, with the
tender and soft end of a spear of grass, drawn from a green plant. But
there was no appearance of the entrails of one having come in contact
with those of the other, for the integument was less than one-tenth of
an inch in its whole thickness; in length, from the body or trunk of
one fish to the other, it was three-tenths; and in the water, when the
largest fish was in its natural position, the small one could, by the
length and pliancy of this skin, swim in nearly the same position. When
these fish came into existence it is probable they were of almost equal
size and strength, but one "born to better fortune," or exercising more
ingenuity and industry than the other, gained a trifling ascendency,
which he improved to increase the disparity, and, by pushing his
extended mouth in advance of the other, seized the choicest and most of
the food for himself.
From the northern parts of British America we have received
extraordinary contributions to our fish collections. One of these is
the Square-browed Malthe, obtained in one of the land expeditions under
the command of Captain Sir John Franklin. R.N. It was taken on the
Labrador coast, and then belonged to a species hitherto undescribed.
Its intestines were filled with small crabs and univalve shells. The
extreme length of the fish is 7 inches 11 lines. The upper surface
is greyish white, with brown blotches, and the fins are whitish. The
head is much depressed and greatly widened; the eyes far forward; the
snout projecting like a small horn. Most of the fish of this family
can live long out of water, in consequence of the smallness of their
gill-openings; indeed, those of one of the genera are able, even in warm
countries, to pass two or three days in creeping over the land. All the
family conceal themselves in the mud or sand, and lie in wait to take
their prey by surprise. The accompanying engraving is from the very
able work of Dr. Richardson, F.R.S., published by the munificence of
Government.
[Illustration: SQUARE-BROWED MALTHE AND DOUBLE FISH.]
Gold Fish (of the Carp family) have been made to distinguish a
particular sound made by those from whom they receive their food; they
recognise their footsteps at a distance, and come at their call. Captain
Brown says Gold Fish, when kept in ponds, are "frequently taught to rise
to the surface of the water at the sound of a bell to be fed;" and Mr.
Jesse was assured that Gold Fish evince much pleasure on being whistled
to. Hakewill, in his "Apology for God's Power and Providence," cites
Pliny to show that a certain emperor had ponds containing fish, which,
when called by their respective _names_ that were bestowed upon them,
came to the spot whence the voice proceeded. Bernier, in his "History
of Hindustan," states a like circumstance of the fish belonging to the
Great Mogul. The old poet, Martial, also mentions fish coming at the
call, as will be seen by the following translation from one of his
epigrams:--
"Angler! could'st thou be guiltless? Then forbear:
For these are sacred fishes that swim here;
Who know their Sovereign, and will lick his hand.
Than which none's greater in the world's command;
Nay, more; they've names, and when they called are.
Do to their several owners' call repair."
Who, after reading so many instances, can doubt that fish hear?
It has been found that the water from steam-engines, which is thrown
into dams or ponds for the purpose of being cooled, conduces much to
the nutriment of Gold Fish. In these dams, the average temperature
of which is about eighty degrees, it is common to keep Gold Fish; in
which situation they multiply much more rapidly than in ponds of lower
temperature exposed to variations of the climate. Three pair of fish
were put into one of these dams, where they increased so rapidly that at
the end of three years their progeny, which was accidentally poisoned
by verdigris mixed with the refuse tallow from the engine, were taken
out by wheel-barrow-fuls. Gold Fish are by no means useless inhabitants
of these dams, as they consume the refuse grease which would otherwise
impede the cooling of the water by accumulating on its surface. It is
not improbable that this unusual supply of aliment may co-operate with
increase of temperature in promoting the fecundity of the fishes.
Most of our readers have heard of the fish popularly known as the
Miller's Thumb, the origin of the name of which Mr. Yarrell has thus
explained:--"It is well known that all the science and tact of a miller
is directed so to regulate the machinery of his mill that the meal
produced shall be of the most valuable description that the operation
of grinding will permit, when performed under the most advantageous
circumstances. His ear is constantly directed to the note made by the
running stone in its circular course over the bedstone, the exact
parallelism of their two surfaces, indicated by a particular sound,
being a matter of the first consequence; and his hand is constantly
placed under the meal-spout to ascertain, by actual contact, the
character and quality of the meal produced, which he does by a
particular movement of his thumb in spreading the sample over his
fingers. By this incessant action of the miller's thumb, a peculiarity
in its shape is produced, which is said to resemble exactly the shape of
the _river bull-head_, a fish constantly found in the mill-stream, and
which has obtained for it the name of the Miller's Thumb."
M. Coste has constructed a kind of marine observatory at Concarneau
(Finisterre) for the purpose of studying the habits and instincts of
various Sea-fish. A terrace has been formed on the top of a house on the
quay, with reservoirs arranged like a flight of steps. The sea-water is
pumped up to the topmost reservoir, and thence flows down slowly, after
the manner of a rivulet. The length is divided into 95 cells by wire
net partitions, which, allowing free passage to the water, yet prevent
the different species of fish from mingling together. By this ingenious
contrivance each kind lives separate, enjoying its peculiar food and
habits, unconscious of its state of captivity. Some species, such as the
Mullet, the Stickleback, &c., grow perfectly tame, will follow the hand
that offers them food, and will even allow themselves to be taken out of
the water. The Goby and Bull-head are less familiar. The Turbot, which
looks so unintelligent, will, nevertheless, take food from the hand;
it changes colour when irritated, the spots with which it is covered
growing pale or dark, according to the emotions excited in it. But
the most curious circumstance concerning it is, that it swallows fish
of a much larger size than would appear compatible with the apparent
smallness of its mouth. Thus, a young Turbot, not more than ten inches
in length, has been seen to swallow Pilchards of the largest size. The
Pipe-Fish has two peculiarities. These fish form groups, entwining their
tails together, and remaining immoveable in a vertical position, with
their heads upwards. When food is offered them, they perform a curious
evolution--they turn round on their backs to receive it. This is owing
to the peculiar position of the mouth, which is placed under a kind of
beak, and perpendicular to its axis.
The crustaceous tribes have also furnished much matter of observation.
The Prawn and Crab, for instance, exercises the virtue of conjugal
fidelity to the highest degree; for the male takes hold of his mate,
and never lets her go; he swims with her, crawls about with her, and if
she is forcibly taken away from him, he seizes hold of her again. The
metamorphoses to which various crustaceous tribes are subject have also
been studied with much attention.[16]
Much as the nature and habits of fish have been studied of late years,
the economy of some is to this day involved in obscurity. The Herring
is one of these fishes. The Swedish Herring Fisheries were, at one
time, the largest in Europe, but at present, during the temporary
disappearance of the fish, they have dwindled away. The causes which
influence the movements of the Herring--one of the most capricious of
fish--are a puzzle which naturalists have as yet failed to solve. They
are not migratory, as was at one time believed--that is, they seldom
wander far from the place where they were bred; but they are influenced
by certain hidden and unexplained causes at one time to remain for years
in the deep sea, and at another to come close in to land in enormous
numbers. During the first half of the sixteenth century, Herrings
entirely deserted the Swedish coasts. In 1556 they reappeared, and
remained for thirty-one years in the shallow waters. Throughout this
period they were taken in incalculable numbers; "thousands of ships came
annually from Denmark, Germany, Friesland, Holland, England, and France,
to purchase the fish, of which sufficient were always found for them
to carry away to their own or other countries.... From the small town
of Marstrand alone some two million four hundred thousand bushels were
yearly exported." In 1587 the Herrings disappeared, and remained absent
for seventy-three years, till 1660. In 1727 they returned, and again in
1747, remaining till 1808, and during this last period the fisheries
were prosecuted with extraordinary zeal, industry, and success. The
Government gave every encouragement to settlers, and it was computed
that during some years as many as fifty thousand strangers took part
in them. In 1808 the Herrings once more disappeared, and have never
returned since. The cause must still be considered as quite unknown; but
we may fairly assume, according to historical precedents, that after a
certain period of absence, the Herrings will again return.[17]
Aristotle, in his "History of Animals," makes some extremely curious
observations on Fish and Cetaceous Animals, as might be expected from
the variety of these animals in the Grecian seas. In Spratt and Forbes's
"Travels in Syria" the account of the habits and structure of the
Cuttle-fish in Aristotle's work is ranked amongst the most admirable
natural history essays ever written. It is, moreover, remarkable for its
anticipation.
Dr. Osborne, in 1840, read to the Royal Society a short analysis of
this work, in which he showed that Aristotle anticipated Dr. Jenner's
researches respecting the cuckoo; as also some discoveries respecting
the incubated egg, which were published as new in the above year.
Aristotle describes the economy of bees as we have it at present; but
mistakes the sex of the queen. The various organs are described as
modified throughout the different classes of animals (beginning with
man) in nearly the same order as that afterwards adopted by Cuvier.
The chief value of this body of knowledge, which has been buried for
above 2,000 years, is, that it is a collection of facts observed under
peculiar advantages, such as never since occurred, and that _it is at
the present day to be consulted for new discoveries_.
According to Pliny, for the above work some thousands of men were placed
at Aristotle's disposal throughout Greece and Asia, comprising persons
connected with hunting and fishing, or who had the care of cattle,
fish-ponds, and apiaries, in order that he might obtain information from
all quarters, _ne quid usquam gentium ignoretur ab eo_. According to
Athenæus, Aristotle received from the prince, on account of the expenses
of the work, 800 talents, or upwards of 79,000_l._
FOOTNOTES:
[14] A tench was brought to Mr. Harmer so full of spawn that the skin
was burst by a slight knock, and many thousands of the eggs were lost;
yet even after this misfortune he found the remainder to amount to
383,252! Of other marine animals, which he includes under the general
term fish, the fecundity, though sufficiently great, is by no means
enormous. A lobster yielded 7,227 eggs; a prawn 3,806; and a shrimp
3,057. See Mr. Harmer's paper, "Philosophical Transactions," 1767.
[15] "Athenæum."
[16] See "The Tree-climbing Crab," pp. 282-302.
[17] "Saturday Review."
FISH IN BRITISH COLOMBIA.
In this bitterly cold country, where the snow lies deep six months out
of the twelve, the natives subsist principally on fish, of which there
is an extraordinary abundance generally, and of salmon particularly.
Salmon swarm in such numbers that the rivers cannot hold them. In June
and July every rivulet, no matter how shallow, is so crammed with salmon
that, from sheer want of room, they push one another high and dry upon
the pebbles; and Mr. Lord[18] tells us that each salmon, with its head
up, struggles, fights, and scuffles for precedence. With one's hands
only, or more easily by employing a gaff or a crook-stick, tons of
salmon have been procured by the simple process of hooking them out.
Once started on their journey, the salmon never turn back. As fast as
those in front die, fresh arrivals crowd on to take their places, and
share their fate. "It is a strange and novel sight to see three moving
lines of fish--the dead and dying in the eddies and slack water along
the bank, the living breasting the current in the centre, blindly
pressing on to perish like their kindred." For two months this great
_salmon army_ proceeds on its way up stream, furnishing a supply of food
without which the Indians must perish miserably. The winters are too
severe for them to venture out in search of food, even if there was any
to be obtained. From being destitute of salt, they are unable to cure
meat in the summer for winter provisions, and hence for six months in
the year they depend upon salmon, which they preserve by drying in the
sun.
But the Indian has another source of provision for the winter, fully
as important as the salmon. The Candle-fish supplies him at once with
light, butter, and oil.[19] When dried, and perforated with a rush,
or strip of cypress-bark, it can be lighted, and burns steadily until
consumed. Strung up, and hung for a time in the smoke of a wood fire,
it is preserved as a fatty morsel to warm him when pinched with cold;
and, by heat and pressure, it is easily converted into liquid oil, and
drunk with avidity. That nothing may be wanting, the hollow stalk of the
sea-wrack, which at the root is expanded into a complete flask, makes an
admirable bottle; and so, when the Indian buries himself for long dreary
months in his winter quarters, neither his larder nor his cellar are
empty, and he has a lamp to lighten the darkness. The steamers have,
however, frightened away the Candle-fish and the Indian from their old
haunts, and they have both retreated to the north of the Colombia River.
Amongst the other inhabitants of the salt and fresh waters of these
regions are the Halibut and the Sturgeon, both of which attain to an
immense size. The bays and inlets along the coast abound with marine
wonders. There feasts and fattens the Clam, a bivalve so gigantic that
no oyster-knife can force an entrance, and only when his shell is almost
red-hot will he be at last constrained to open his dwelling.
And there lies in wait the awful Octopus, a monster of insatiable
voracity, of untameable ferocity, and of consummate craft; of sleepless
vigilance, shrouded amidst the forest of sea-weed, and from the touch of
whose terrible arms no living thing escapes. It attains to an enormous
size in those seas, the arms being sometimes five feet in length, and as
thick at the base as a man's wrist. No bather would have a chance if he
once got within the grasp of such a monster, nor could a canoe resist
the strength of its pull; but the Indian, who devours the Octopus with
great relish, has all the cunning created by necessity, and takes care
that none of the eight sucker-dotted arms ever gain a hold on his frail
bark.
Professor Owen has figured a species of Octopus, the Eight-armed Cuttle
of the European seas, representing it in the act of creeping on shore,
its body being carried vertically in the reverse position, with its head
downwards, and its back being turned towards the spectator, upon whom it
is supposed to be advancing. This animal is said to be luminous in the
dark. Linnæus quotes Bartholinus for the statement that one gave so much
light that when the candle was taken away, it illuminated the room.
The Sturgeon is one of the finest fishes of the country, and Mr. Lord's
account of the Indian mode of taking them is a very graphic picture of
this river sport.
"The spearman stands in the bow, armed with a most formidable
spear. The handle, from seventy to eighty feet long, is made of
white pine-wood; fitted on the spear-haft is a barbed point,
in shape very much like a shuttlecock, supposing each feather
represented by a piece of bone, thickly barbed, and very sharp
at the end. This is so contrived that it can be easily detached
from the long handle by a sharp, dexterous jerk. To this barbed
contrivance a long line is made fast, which is carefully coiled
away close to the spearman, like a harpoon-line in a whale-boat.
The four canoes, alike equipped, are paddled into the centre of
the stream, and side by side drift slowly down with the current,
each spearman carefully feeling along the bottom with his spear,
constant practice having taught the crafty savages to know a
Sturgeon's back when the spear comes in contact with it. The
spear-head touches the drowsy fish; a sharp plunge, and the
redskin sends the notched points through armour and cartilage,
deep into the leather-like muscles. A skilful jerk frees the long
handle from the barbed end, which remains inextricably fixed in
the fish; the handle is thrown aside, the line seized, and the
struggle begins. The first impulse is to resist this objectionable
intrusion, so the angry Sturgeon comes up to see what it all
means. This curiosity is generally repaid by having a second spear
sent crashing into him. He then takes a header, seeking safety in
flight, and the real excitement commences. With might and main the
bowman plies the paddle, and the spearman pays out the line, the
canoe flying through the water. The slightest tangle, the least
hitch, and over it goes; it becomes, in fact, a sheer trial of
paddle _versus_ fin. Twist and turn as the Sturgeon may, all the
canoes are with him. He flings himself out of the water, dashes
through it, under it, and skims along the surface; but all is in
vain, the canoes and their dusky oarsmen follow all his efforts
to escape, as a cat follows a mouse. Gradually the Sturgeon
grows sulky and tired, obstinately floating on the surface. The
savage knows he is not vanquished, but only biding a chance for
revenge; so he shortens up the line, and gathers quietly on him
to get another spear in. It is done,--and down viciously dives
the Sturgeon; but pain and weariness begin to tell, the struggles
grow weaker and weaker as life ebbs slowly away, until the mighty
armour-plated monarch of the river yields himself a captive to the
dusky native in his frail canoe."
There is a very rare Spoonbill Sturgeon found in the western waters
of North America: its popular name is Paddle-fish. One, five feet in
length, weighed forty pounds; the nose, resembling a spatula, was
thirteen inches in length. It was of a light slate colour, spotted with
black; belly white; skin smooth, like an eel; the flesh compact and
firm, and hard when boiled--not very enticing to the epicure. The jaws
are without teeth, but the fauces are lined with several tissues of the
most beautiful network, evidently for the purpose of collecting its food
from the water by straining, or passing it through these membranes in
the same manner as practised by the spermaceti whale. Near the top of
the head are two small holes, through which it is possible the Sturgeon
may discharge water in the manner practised by cetaceous animals. It is
conjectured that the long "Spoonbill" nose of this fish is for digging
up or moving the soft mud in the bottom of the river, and when the water
is fully saturated, draw it through the filamentory strainers in search
of food.
Sturgeons resemble sharks in their general form, but their bodies are
defended by bony shields, disposed in longitudinal rows; and their head
is also well curiassed externally. The Sturgeons of North America are of
little benefit to the natives. A few speared in the summer-time suffice
for the temporary support of some Indian hordes; but none are preserved
for winter use, and the roe and sounds are utterly wasted.
The northern limit of the Sturgeon in America is probably between the
55th and 56th parallels of latitude. Dr. Richardson did not meet with
any account of its existence to the north of Stewart's Lake, on the west
side of the Rocky Mountains; and on the east side it does not go higher
than the Saskatchewan and its tributaries. It is not found in Churchill
River, nor in any of the branches of the Mackenzie or other streams that
fall into the Arctic Seas--a remarkable circumstance when we consider
that some species swarm in the Asiatic rivers which flow into the Icy
Sea. Sturgeons occur in all the great lakes communicating with the
St. Lawrence, and also along the whole Atlantic coast of the United
States down to Florida. Peculiar species inhabit the Mississippi; it is,
therefore, probable that the range of the genus extends to the Gulf of
Mexico.