Table of Contents

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The skeleton in this large and very natural Order is composed of bone; the first rays (counting from the head backward), of the dorsal fin, of the pectorals, and of the anal, and, generally the first ray of the ventrals are unjointed, inflexible, and spinous. When there is more than one dorsal, the anterior is entirely filled with spinous rays. In some cases, as in the common Sticklebacks, the spinous rays are unconnected by a common membrane, and form free spines. The ventrals are, for the most part beneath the pectorals, or even in advance of them. The body is clothed with scales formed of successive laminæ or layers of horn-like, unenamelled bone, which have their free hinder margin cut into teeth. The swimming-bladder is not furnished with an air-duct leading into the gullet.

Nearly two-thirds of the species belonging to the whole Class of Fishes are found in this Order, which are scattered over all parts of the world, both in fresh and salt waters. Many of them are distinguished for elegance of form and beauty of colour; nearly all are fit for food, and some, as the Mackerel family, including the Tunny, support important fisheries.

The form of the dorsal fin is subject to much variation in this Order. Nearly half of the species have it divided into two, a spinous and a ​flexible one; a large portion of the remainder have the division indicated by a depression in the margin, or a cleft more or less deep, though the membrane is continuous. In some cases, as already intimated, the first dorsal is represented by a few detached spines, either quite destitute of membrane, or each furnished with its own.

In some of the Gurnards one or more of the spinous rays are greatly prolonged beyond the membrane; in the Dory the membrane is prolonged between the spines into lengthened threads; in the Sword-fish, the Opah, and the Gemmeous Dragonet, the anterior portion is elevated like a sail; while in the singular genus Pteraclis, of the American seas, figured on the opposite page, both the dorsal and the anal are so immense as to give to the vertical outline of this fish somewhat the form of a butterfly with expanded wings. The Gurnards have the pectorals unusually developed, so that some foreign species can use them as organs of flight through the air. Examples of this, in a less degree, may be observed in our native species, ​which have these fins very large, and several long supplementary rays in front of them.

The following seventeen Families of Acanthopterygian Fishes are enumerated in the synopsis of the Prince of Canino, who gives the affixed number of species known (in 1831) to belong to each.

SP.
1	Percadæ	483
2	Sphyrænadæ	15
3	Mullidæ	42
4	Trigladæ	164
5	Sciænadæ	231
6	Sparidæ	158
7	Mænadæ	43
8	Chætodontidæ	157
9	Scombridæ	262
10	Cepoladæ	14
11	Teuthididæ	60
12	Ophiocephalidæ	40
13	Mugilidæ	52
14	Gobiadæ	173
15	Lophiadæ	40
16	Labridæ	283
17	Fistulariadæ	15
Total 2232

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A vast assemblage of species, amounting to about one-seventh of the whole Class, is seen by the preceding table to be comprised in this Family. They are, for the most part, marine fishes, though the typical genus, which gives a name to the Family, inhabits fresh waters. The form is generally long-oval; the body is covered with scales, the surface of which is more or less rough, and the free margins of which are notched like the teeth of a comb; the scales do not extend upon the fins; the gill-cover (operculum), and the gill-flap (preoperculum), are variously armed with spines, and cut into teeth at their margins. Both the upper and lower jaw are set with teeth, besides which, the bones of the palate and the vomer (or middle ridge of the roof of the mouth) are furnished with them, so that there are five rows of teeth above, and two below. In general, all the teeth are fine, and set in close array, so as to bear a remote resemblance, in appearance, to the pile of velvet. The branchiostegous rays, or the slender arched bones of the membrane that closes the great fissure of the gills beneath, vary in number from five to seven. The ventral fins are, in general, placed under the pectorals; the dorsal is either double or depressed in the middle.

So immense a Family cannot but comprise several varieties of form, which, while agreeing in the important characteristics that distinguish these Fishes from those of the other Families, ​differ considerably in subordinate points. Five leading types are seen to subsist, around which so many groups, called Sub-Families, are arranged. These we shall briefly notice.

The true Perches (Percina) have two distinct dorsal fins, with the membrane which connects the rays semi-transparent and nearly colourless. The pectorals and ventrals are obtuse, or somewhat rounded; the former contain each five soft rays; the latter are placed beneath the pectorals. The form of the body is oblong; the scales are comparatively large; the mouth is wide, and furnished with short and small teeth much crowded, without any larger pointed teeth, resembling canines, at the sides. The genus Lucioperca, as its name, signifying Pike-perch, expresses, has the structure of a Perch with the form and appearance, and even the ferocity of a Pike; while the Diploprion, of the coast of Java, and still more the Enoplosus of Australia, might readily be mistaken for a true Chætodon, having not only the short, high, compressed form of that genus, with its tall fins, but the small mouth, and delicate teeth, and even the characteristic colours and markings of Chætodon, the former being yellow, with a black vertical band through the eye, and another across the body, and the latter silvery white, with seven or eight vertical bands. Yet in each case the fins are destitute of scales, the gill-plates are spinous, and all the essential characters of true Perches, are exhibited.

The Serrans (Serranina), a very numerous sub-family, are distinguished by having the two dorsals united into a single fin, the place of the division being marked, however, by a depression ​more or less deep in the outline. They have for the most part a larger acute tooth on each side of the mouth, resembling the canines of Mammalia. Their colours are generally beautiful, and frequently arranged in bands and spots, extending upon the fin-membranes. They are all marine, and nearly all tropical, but some are found in the Mediterranean, and two species have been met with on the coast of Cornwall.

The third Sub-family, named Holocentrina, or the Mailed Perches, are still more beautiful than the preceding. They are usually of small size, but of great brilliancy of colouring, the prevailing hues being various shades of red, ranging from the richest crimson to a gorgeous orange or golden hue. They are all clothed with bony, generally toothed, scales, which in some of the genera form a close impenetrable coat of mail. Not a single British example of this group is known, they being almost confined to the tropical seas.

In the Jugular Perches (Percophina) the ventrals are placed beneath the throat, considerably in advance of the line of the pectorals. The head is pointed, and the lips generally thickened, as in the Wrasses (Labridæ); the body is remarkably lengthened. To this group belong some common British Fishes known as Weevers (Trachinus, Linn.), remarkable for the enormous length of the second dorsal and the anal, and for the formidable spines with which they are armed. These spines are the rays of the first dorsal, which are very sharp and strong, and a long lance-like spine on the gill-flap; wounds inflicted with which are believed to be poisoned. Whether ​this be so or not, it is certain that they speedily exhibit symptoms of strong inflammation, attended with acute pain, extending to a great distance from the part lacerated. The Weever appears to be perfectly aware of the power of its weapons; it buries itself in the mud or sand at the bottom, with its mouth, which opens upwards, exposed. As it thus lies in wait for any passing prey, it may often be touched by an unconscious assailant, when instantly the little warrior strikes forcibly with his pointed spears, upwards and to each side. Pennant says of the Little Weever, that he has seen it direct its blows with as much judgment as a fighting-cock.

The last Sub-Family, the Helotina, "constitute," says Cuvier, "a group formed, as it were, to make naturalists despair, by showing how Nature laughs at what we deem characteristic combinations;" the genera possessing mutual relations sufficient to forbid their separation, and bearing a great resemblance to the other members of the common Family; while the species exhibit in the subordinate characters, such as the number, form, position, and even presence of the teeth, much diversity. None, however, have more than six gill-arches; they have no scales on the head, muzzle, or jaws; the dorsal spines, when depressed, fall into a longitudinal groove on the back; and the air-bladder is always divided into two distinct sacs, connected by a narrow neck. These too are chiefly inhabitants of warm latitudes, some marine, and some fluviatile; they do not possess much attractiveness of appearance, their colour being, in general, silvery grey, marked with dusky longitudinal lines.

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The distinctive characters of the Perches proper are two dorsal fins quite separated, of which the fore one possesses only spinous rays, the hinder only flexible or soft ones. The tongue is smooth; the mouth is armed with teeth, situated in both jaws, in front of the vomer or middle

ridge of the palate, and on the bones of the palate itself; the fore gill-flap (preoperculum) is notched below, and has its hind edge cut into small teeth like those of a saw; the gill-cover (operculum) is bony, and terminates in a flattened spiine pointing backwards. The gill-arches are ​seven. The scales are rough, hard, and detached with difficulty.

The Common Perch (Perca fluviatilis, Linn.) is well known, not only to the angler, but to almost every country child; for it inhabits most of our lakes and rivers, especially where the banks are steep, and is so bold as to bite at nearly any bait. Hence this is usually the first fish that rewards the infant angler’s enterprise.

It scarcely yields to any of our native Fishes in

beauty; its form is compact and powerful, and its colours attractive, especially when seen through the clear water in which it is playing. Its aspect, ​however, when drawn from the water, is determined and almost ferocious, particularly when the high and spinous dorsal-fin is stiffly erected.

The excellence of the Perch, as a table fish, is generally acknowledged; in this respect, perhaps, it is exceeded by none of our fluviatile species, with the exception of the Trout and the Salmon. Perch of five pounds are not uncommon, and they have been known to attain even double this weight. A Fish of large size needs good tackle as well as skill in the angler, for it is powerful in proportion to its size. When Perch run large, a minnow, roach, or gudgeon is a successful bait; but the more usual baits are worms and gentles; fresh-water shrimps are much used by those who fish for Perch in the docks of London, where these Fishes are both fine and plentiful. In still water, as that of lakes or ponds, the bait should be allowed to float in mid-water; in rivers, nearer the bottom. In March, the Perch deposits its spawn, after which it will afford good sport to the end of October; a cool day with a fresh breeze to ruffle the surface, being most propitious.

The readiness with which this beautiful fish is taken is partly due to its voracity, in which it almost equals the ravenous Pike; when hungry indeed, it will seize almost any object that is presented to it. A writer in the New Sporting Magazine, says that he has repeatedly taken a Perch with no other bait than a portion of the gills of one just captured, accidentally remaining on the hook, the line having been carelessly allowed to drop into the water while a fresh bait was being selected. "Red seems an attractive ​colour to them, and whether it presents itself in the blood of one of their former companions, or the hackle of a cock, is a matter of perfect indifference."^[1]

There are plenty of very fine Perch all along the Thames, but the most favourite resorts for these fish, are the deeps near Twickenham, either above or below the lock at Teddington, and in some deep holes about halfway between the lock and Hampton Wick; Perch have been taken in these places frequently as large as four pounds' weight each.

Very large Perch and Trout are taken in the rivers of Ireland, by a contrivance known as the pooka. It consists of a flat board, with a little mast and sail erected on it. Its use is to carry out the extremity of a long, stout line, to which are suspended at certain intervals, a great number of droppers, each armed with a baited hook. Corks are affixed to the principal line to keep it floating, and from a weather shore, any quantity of hooks can thus be floated over the water. The corks indicate to the fisher when a fish is on a dropper, and in a small punt he attends to remove the fish and rebait the hooks. Two hundred hooks are sometimes used on one pooka, which affords much amusement and a well-filled pannier.

This beautiful Fish appears to be common in the rivers and lakes throughout Ireland; in Scotland, however, it is rare, and in the waters that dissect, as it were, the northern portion of that kingdom, it is quite unknown. On the continent, it has a much more northern range; for large Perch, ​of five or six pounds in weight, are abundant in the lakes and rivers of Sweden, and afford good angling. The head of a Perch is said to be preserved in the church of Luehlah, in Lapland, which measures nearly twelve inches from the point of the nose to the end of the gill-cover, which, according to the proportion of parts in ordinary specimens, would give the enormous total length of four feet for this Fish. It is possible, however, that this may be the head of some other species.

Perch resort to pits, eddies, holes, the pillars of bridges, and mill-dams; they frequent the floors of staunches early in the morning, where they may be taken in great numbers at break of day, by means of a casting-net; in these places they work to meet the fresh water that oozes through.

The Perch has a tendency to ascend towards the springs of rivers, having a great repugnance to sea-water. It delights in clean swift streams with a gravelly bottom, not very deep; it is seldom found at a greater depth than a yard below the surface. It is tenacious of life, though perhaps less so than the Carp; it has been known to survive a journey of fifty miles, in the old days of travelling, when railways were unknown.

Like other "anglers' Fish," the Perch is not very often seen on the stalls of fishmongers in London. In Billingsgate market it is, however, sometimes exposed, especially on Fridays, as it is bought chiefly by Jews to form part of their Sabbath repast. We believe that this Fish is kept by the dealers in tanks, and that those which are not sold are frequently so little injured by ​exposure, as to be returned to the water, where they soon recover.

O'Gorman describes the Perch as fond of noise, and as even sensible to the charms of music. One of his sons assured him that he had once seen a vast shoal of Perch appear at the surface, attracted by the sound of the bag-pipes of a Scotch regiment, that happened to be passing over a neighbouring bridge, and that they remained until the sounds died away in the distance.^[2]

The Perch is a bold and fearless fish, and not a little destructive: small fry of all kinds are greedily devoured by him; he roots up the spawn-beds to feed on the deposited ova; small Roach and Trout are destroyed by him in great numbers, and even Trout of considerable size are often driven from their feeding-places near shore by this beautiful but tyrannical spinous-finned fish.

In the beautiful lake of Geneva the Perch is said to be subject to a singular accident. In the winter these fishes ordinarily remain at a considerable depth, where, from the superincumbent weight of so great a body of water, the air contained within the swim-bladder is much compressed. If now from any impulse a fish suddenly rises to the surface, the pressure being removed, the air forcibly expands, and not being able to find any outlet, the membranous bladder becomes greatly distended, sometimes to such a degree that it is forced out at the mouth of the fish, dragging the stomach, turned inside out, with it. In this sad condition, unable to sink, the ​poor fish floats a few days on the surface, dragging out a miserable existence, until death puts a period to its sufferings. If, however, the bladder be pierced when in this state, the contained air escapes, the viscera recover their proper position, and the fish is saved.^[3]

The Perch spawns at the age of three years, when it is about six inches in length; the month of April is the season for this operation if the water be moderately shallow; but in deep water the spawning is later. In a Perch of two pounds the roe weighs seven or eight ounces, and contains, according to Harmers, 281,000 eggs, but according to Picot, nearly a million; the number varying according to the age of the fish. Large and old fishes contain more ova than the smaller ones, which is not surprising, since the individual eggs are of the same size in both; they are very minute, and have been compared to poppy seeds.^[4]

The Perch, when seen alive in a clear stream, is, as we have said, a beautiful fish. Perhaps the elevation of its back may be thought to detract from its elegance of form, giving it a humped appearance. The back rises somewhat abruptly just behind the head, after which it tapers to the tail: the height of the body, independent of the fins, is about twice that of the width. The general hue of the upper parts is a rich olive, crossed by five or six dark brown bands, which become inconspicuous after death. The sides have a brassy tinge, with pearly and steel-blue reflections about the cheeks; the under parts are pure silvery white. The two dorsal fins, and the pectorals take ​nearly the same hues as the parts from which they respectively arise; but the caudal, the anal, and the ventrals have their rays of the most brilliant scarlet, especially the latter, and the membranes are tinged with the same hue. The iris of the eye is golden. The lateral line is distinct, running in a slightly arching line from the gill-flap to the tail-fin.

Mr. Yarrell mentions, as having been found in the waters of particular soils, specimens of the Perch almost entirely white; and others of an uniform slate-grey hue with a silvery appearance. The latter variety is obtained in the ponds of Ravenfield Park, in Yorkshire, and is found to retain its peculiarity of colour, when transferred from its native ponds to other waters.

Yet another variation of hue, associated with another curious peculiarity, is ascribed to the Perch of Malham, or Maum Tarn, in Yorkshire, by Hartley, the author of an account of some natural curiosities of that neighbourhood. Speaking of these fishes, he says, "There is certainly a very extraordinary phenomenon attending them, the cause of which I leave to naturalists to ascertain. After a certain age they become blind: a hard, thick, yellow film covers the whole surface of the eye, and renders the sight totally obscured. When this is the case, the fish generally are exceedingly black; and although, from the more extreme toughness and consistency of the membrane, it is evident that some have been much longer in this state than others, yet there appears no difference either in their flavour or condition. Perch of five pounds' weight and more have been taken. They are only to be caught with a net; ​and appear to feed at the "bottom, on Loach, Miller's Thumb, and testaceous mollusca."

The scales of the Perch have their hinder, or free edge, set with fine crystalline points, arranged in successive rows, and overlapping. Their

front side is cut with a scolloped pattern, the extremities of undulations of the surface that radiate from a common point behind the centre. These undulations are separated by narrow furrows, across which, contrary to the ordinary rule, the close-set concentric lines that follow the sinuosities of the outline are not visible. Under the microscope they look as if they had been split in these radiating lines, after the whole number of layers had been completed, and that the fissures had then been filled with new transparent substance. The engraving above represents scales selected from different parts of the body of a Perch, and magnified. a is from the back; b is from the lateral line, and shows the tube for the passage of the lubricating mucus well developed; c is from the belly. The concentric lines, it should be observed, are much more delicate and close than could possibly be engraved without greatly enlarging the scale.

​The nostril in the Perch has two external openings, surrounded by several orifices, through which issues a mucous secretion for the defence of the skin against the action of the water. "The distribution of the mucous orifices over the head," remarks Mr. Yarrell, "is one of those beautiful and advantageous provisions of Nature which are so often to be observed and admired. Whether the fish inhabits the stream or the lake, the current of the water in the one case, or progression through it in the other, carries this defensive secretion backwards, and spreads it over the whole surface of the body. In fishes with small scales, this defensive secretion is in proportion more abundant; and in those species which have the body elongated, as the Eels, the mucous orifices may be observed along the whole length of the lateral line."^[5]

The fishes of this Family were placed by Linnæus among the Pikes, which they resemble in their lengthened form, in their strong and pointed teeth, and in the projection of their lower jaw. They are now, however, widely removed from that genus. Cuvier arranged them in the great Family of the Perches, with which they have many points in common; but the Prince of Canino forms them into a distinct Family.

They have the ventral fins placed considerably behind the pectorals, and the bones of the pelvis ​are quite detached from the bones of the shoulders. The head is long, and the lower jaw projects beyond the upper, giving a ferocious aspect to the countenance, well borne out by the habits and powers of at least the principal genus. They have two dorsals, both placed far behind; the second is small, and in one of the genera

(Paralepis), fleshy. The Family is very limited, containing only about fifteen living species, inhabiting the Mediterranean and the warmer parts of the ocean. There are, however, thirteen fossil species assigned to it.

The technical characters of this genus are, that the body is slender and much lengthened; the jaws are long and broad, but of little depth; the mouth is large, armed with strong teeth, some of which are larger and stouter than the others; the chin is advanced and pointed; the two dorsal fins are triangular in form, remote from each other, and dividing the whole length of the body into three equal parts; the ventrals are placed beneath the first dorsal.

​The Barracoota of the West Indies (Sphyræna barracuda, Cuv.), is reckoned among the number of marine monsters greedy of human flesh. It is common in the seas that wash those lovely tropical islands, where it attains the length of ten or twelve feet, though it is more generally met with about half that size. The thickness is not in

proportion to the length. The mouth is wide, the lower jaw projects beyond the upper, and is armed with formidable teeth, with two larger pointed canines in front; the upper jaw has many large and strong teeth scattered among minute ones. The two dorsals are placed far apart, the first immediately above the ventrals, the second above the anal. The formula of the fin-rays is as follows: D. 5; 1—9; C. 19; P. 12; V. 1—5; A. 1—9. The tail is much forked. The upper parts are dark greyish brown, becoming paler on the sides, the belly white. It is covered with small thin scales.

This formidable and voracious fish is much dreaded in the seas which it inhabits. It not unfrequently attacks and devours men while bathing; Dutertre affirms that it is even more dangerous than the dreadful shark, inasmuch as noise and motion, so far from intimidating it, only excite it ​the rather to rush towards its victims. Notwithstanding this anthropophagous appetite, however, it is eaten with relish, and is publicly sold in the fish-markets. A graver objection to it is that it is occasionally poisonous, which the colonists believe is owing to its feeding on submerged "copper-banks," or else to its having eaten the deadly fruit of the Manchioneel-tree. If incautiously tasted under such circumstances, it is said to produce sickness, vomiting, and intolerable pain in the head, accompanied with loss of the hair and nails; and, in very bad cases, immediate death is the result. As a criterion of its wholesomeness, the teeth and liver are examined; if the former be white and the latter bitter, it is sound; but if the teeth be green and the liver sweetish, it cannot be eaten with impunity.

"What has been reported," observes M. Cuvier, "of the poisonous fishes of hot countries, and of that disease called siguatera, which they occasion in certain circumstances, is so curious and interesting, that I am justified in inserting the information collected by M. Plée on the Barracoota, which I have found in the papers of that unfortunate naturalist. Many persons, says he, fear to eat this fish because they have had frequent evidence of its causing disease, and sometimes death. This poisonous quality of the Barracoota belongs very certainly to a particular state of the individual, which appears to occur at different seasons of the year.

"I have consulted many persons with regard to the poison of the Barracoota; all have assured me that there is an infallible mode of determining whether it is, or is not, poisonous. For this end ​they have only to observe if, in cutting it up, there flows away a sort of white water, or rather a kind of thin matter, which is, in every case, a certain sign that the fish is in the diseased state of which I have spoken above. D. Arthur O'Neill, Marquis del Norte, has told me that he has seen experiments tried on dogs, and that all have confirmed the exactness of this criterion. The symptoms of poisoning by the Barracoota are, a general trembling, nausea, vomiting, and acute pains, particularly in the joints of the arms and the hands. Sometimes the symptoms succeed each other with such rapidity that it becomes extremely difficult to determine with precision the different periods of the disease.

"When death does not terminate the malady, which happily is the more ordinary case, the virus is sometimes seen to cause pathological phenomena altogether singular. The pains in the joints become stronger; the nails of the feet and hands gradually fall away; the hair also, which is of a nature analogous to the nails, ends by falling off. These phenomena have been observed in many individuals, sometimes continuing during a great number of years. A person has been mentioned to me, who suffered in this way more than twenty-five years.

"It is a remarkable fact that when the Barracoota has been salted, it never causes any accident. At St. Croix, for example, they are in the habit of eating it only the day after it has been salted. Does salt act as an antidote to the poison of this fish?

"I have not myself been a witness of any cases of poisoning by the Barracoota, and I have only ​recorded what I have been told by persons in other respects well instructed and worthy of credit."^[6]

This also is a Family of limited extent, arranged by Cuvier with the Perches. Its distinctive characters are these:—the shape is somewhat oval, but the fore parts are thick in proportion to the hind; the head is large, somewhat compressed, higher than broad; the profile is abrupt, approaching to a vertical line; the eyes are placed near the summit, but look laterally; the mouth is small, armed with minute teeth; the lower jaw is furnished with two fleshy beards (cirri), which depend from its under side; the line of the back is arched, that of the belly nearly straight; the gill-cover and body are clothed with large scales, easily detached: there are two dorsal fins, widely separated; the caudal is forked.

About fifty species are included in this Family, contained in two genera, Mullus and Upeneus. The former of these, containing but two species, is found in the Mediterranean and in the British seas; the latter and more numerous one, little differing from it in appearance or structure, is distributed over the tropical parts of the ocean. They are nearly all coloured with different shades of red, often varied with yellow or pale stripes; their flesh is much esteemed.

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The European Surmullets are distinguished by having the characters already enumerated more strongly developed; the head is very abrupt, the profile nearly vertical, the gill-cover is smooth, and destitute of any spine; the teeth on the palate and in the lower jaw very minute.

Of the two species which form this genus, both of which are marked in catalogues as British, one is as common as the other is rare. The former is

the Striped Surmullet (Mullus surmuletus, Linn.), and is found in our fish-markets throughout the year, though in greatest abundance during the summer months. It is commonly about ten inches or a foot in length, and is rarely known to exceed fourteen inches. Its form and general appearance will be recognised from the accompanying engraving, but it should be seen alive, or at least just dead, to convey a notion of its beauty, which depends on its evanescent hues. The ​ground-colour is a delicate pink, interrupted by three or four pale yellowish bands which run down the sides. The scales, however, which are very large, are removed with a slight degree of force; and wherever this occurs, there is a deposit of blood at the injured part below the outer skin; manifested by the colour becoming then of a purplish red, and hence we so commonly see this fish, especially after it has been handled, marbled with patches of purple and scarlet upon the delicate rose-colour of the ground.

The Surmullet is much esteemed for the table; the flesh is of agreeable flavour, and easy of digestion. It is customary to prepare it for cooking without drawing, like the Woodcock; the reason in both cases being that the food consists of soft molluscous or annellidous animals, of which little traces remain in the intestines. The Romans carried their admiration of this fish to a most extravagant pitch in the luxurious times of the Empire. The satirical poets, lashing the vices and follies of the age, have given us some particulars of this mania, only surpassed by the Tulip-madness which raged in Holland in the 17th century, when a sum equal to 425l. sterling, together with a carriage, horses, and harness, was given for a single bulb. One Calliodorus gave a sum of money equal to ten guineas for a Surmullet of four pounds' weight; one of six pounds was bought for 48l.; one still larger for 64l.; and three of equal size were purchased by the Emperor for the same entertainment at the enormous price of 243l. 10s. At length Tiberius attempted to restrain the extravagance by imposing a tax upon all provisions brought to market.

​Messengers were sent at great expense to the most distant shores of the Mediterranean to procure these fishes, which, when brought home, were kept alive in vivaria or tanks of sea-water. By a refinement of luxury, the Mullets were even brought to table alive, that the guests might feast their eyes upon the changes of hue which flit over the bodies of these fishes in the agonies of death. "The fishes," says Cicero, "swim under the couches of the guests. A Mullet is not considered fresh unless it actually die before their eyes; they gaze upon it exposed to view in glass bowls, and watch the various tints that play over it one after another as it passes from life to death." The species selected for this inhuman exhibition appears to have been the smaller and more rare M. barbatus, which is destitute of yellow stripes, and does not exceed six inches in length. The name of the genus Mullus is said to have been given to these fishes from their hue resembling that of the Mulleus or scarlet sandal worn by the Roman Consuls and Emperors.

The curious organs called beards (cirri) that are attached to the chin in these and some other fishes are connected with the search after food. Mr. Yarrell has some interesting observations on this subject, which we shall here quote from his valuable volume on British Fishes. "These cirri are generally placed near the mouth, and they are mostly found in those fishes that are known to feed very near the bottom. On dissecting these appendages in the Mullet, the common Cod, and others, I found them to consist of an elongated and slender flexible cartilage, invested by numerous longitudinal muscular and nervous fibres, and ​covered by an extension of the common skin. The muscular apparatus is most apparent in the Mullet, the nervous portion most conspicuous in the Cod. These appendages are to them, I have no doubt, delicate organs of touch, by which all the species provided with them are enabled to ascertain, to a certain extent, the qualities of the various substances with which they are brought in contact; and are analogous in function to the beak, with its distribution of nerves, among certain wading and swimming birds, which probe for food beyond their sight; and may be considered another instance, among the many beautiful provisions of Nature, by which, in the case of fishes feeding at great depths, where light is deficient, compensation is made for consequent imperfect vision."^[7]

The Striped Surmullet is occasionally taken in great abundance: the eminent zoologist just cited mentions five thousand taken in one night in Weymouth Bay, in August, 1819; and ten thousand sent from Yarmouth to the London market in one week, in May 1831. Their presence, however, is precarious; sometimes they become quite rare, where a day or two before they were abundant; other spots at the same time becoming the favoured scenes of their resort. They are principally taken with the trawl-net, which drags along the bottom of the sea.

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Cuvier formed these Fishes into the second Family of the AcanthopterygiiUranoscopus