Chaps. 29-38.

Chap. 29.—The Scarus, the Mustela.

At the present day, the first place is given to the scarus, [Cuvier says that this fish held, as Pliny here states, the very highest place at the Roman tables, and was especially famous: First, because it was supposed to ruminate; in allusion to which, Ovid says, Halieut. l. 118, “But, on the other hand, some fishes extend themselves on the sands covered with weeds, as the scarus, which fish alone ruminates the food it has eaten.” Secondly, because, as Aristotle, B. viii. c. 2, and Ælian, B. i. c. 2, inform us, it lived solely on vegetables. Thirdly, because it had the faculty of producing a sound, as we learn from Oppian, Halieut. B. i. l. 134, and Suidas. Fourthly, for its salacious propensities, numbers being taken by means of a female attached to a string. Oppian, Halieut. B. iv. l. 78, and Ælian, B. i. c. 2. Fifthly, for its remarkable sagacity in affording assistance to another, when taken in the net; relative to which Ovid has the following curious passage, Halieut. l. 9, et seq. “The scarus is caught by stratagem beneath the waves, and at length dreads the bait fraught with treachery. It dares not strike the osiers with an effort of its head; but, turning away, as it loosens the twigs with frequent blows of its tail, it makes its passage, and escapes safely into the deep. Moreover, if perchance any kind scarus, swimming behind, sees it struggling within the osiers, he takes hold of its tail in his mouth, as it is thus turned away, and so it makes its escape.” Oppian, Halieut. B. iv. l. 40, and Ælian, Hist. Anim. B. i. c. 4, mention the same circumstance. We find that it was highly esteemed by the Roman epicures, even in early times, it being mentioned by Ennius and Horace. It was salted with the intestines in it; and Martial, B. xiii. Ep. 84, seems to speak of it as not being good to eat without them. It was a high-coloured fish, so much so, that Marcellus Sidetes called it “floridum,” while by Oppian it is called ποικίλον, or “variegated.” Rondelet thinks that it was one of spari or the labri, while Belon describes as such, a fish now unknown to zoologists, the tail of which, he says, has projecting spines. Aldrovandus calls it by the name of Scarus Cretensis, a species of the genus which at present goes by the name of Scarus, and which is distinguished by osseous jaw-bones, resembling in shape the beak of a parrot. Cuvier says, that on finding from Belon that the name σκάρος was still in use in the Ægean Sea, he ordered the various kinds of it to be brought to Paris; upon which he found that they exactly resembled the Scarus Cretensis of Aldrovandus, and he consequently has no doubt that it is essentially the same fish as the scarus of the Greeks and Romans. From the resemblance above stated, it is not uncommonly called the “parrot-fish;” while by some it has been thought to have resembled our char.] the only fish that is said to ruminate, and to feed on grass and not on other fish. It is mostly found in the Carpathian Sea, and never of its own accord passes Lectum, [See B. v. cc. 32, 41.] a promontory of Troas. Optatus Elipertius, the commander of the fleet under the Emperor Claudius, had this fish brought from that locality, and dispersed in various places off the coast between Ostia and the districts of Campania. During five years, the greatest care was taken that those which were caught should be returned to the sea; but since then they have been always found in great abundance off the shores of Italy, where formerly there were none to be taken. Thus has gluttony introduced these fish, to be a dainty within its reach, and added a new inhabitant to the seas; so that we ought to feel no surprise that foreign birds breed at Rome.

The fish that is next in estimation for the table is the mustela, [Or weasel-fish. Cuvier is of opinion that Hardouin is right in his conjecture, that this is the Lote, or Gadus lota of Linnæus, which is still called motelle in some of the provinces of France. Its liver, he says, is one of the greatest delicacies that can be eaten.] but that is valued only for its liver. A singular thing to tell of—the lake of Brigantia, [The present Boden See, or Lake of Constance.] in Rhætia, lying in the midst of the Alps, produces them to rival even those of the sea. [Instead of “marinis,” Sillig adopts the reading “murænis,” making them to rival the muræna even. The other, however, seems to be the preferable reading.]

Chap. 30.—The Various Kinds of Mullets, and the Sargus That Attends Them.

Of the remaining fish that are held in any degree of esteem, the mullet [Cuvier says that this is the τρίγλα of the Greeks, the triglia of modern Italy, the rouget of Provence, and the Mullus barbatus of Linnæus.] is the most highly valued, as well as the most abundant of all; it is of only a moderate size, rarely exceeds two pounds in weight, and will never grow beyond that weight in preserves or fish-ponds. These fish are only to be found in the Northern Ocean, [The coasts of La Manche, Cuvier says, and the Gulf of Gascony produce a kind of mullet of larger size than usual, varied with stripes of a yellow colour. This, the Mullus surmuletus of Linnæus, is also to be found in the Mediterranean, but much more rarely than the smaller kind, which is red all over.] exceeding two pounds in weight, and even there in none but the more westerly parts. As for the other kinds, the various species are numerous; some [Aristotle, Hist. Anim. B. viii. c. 5; Ælian, Hist. Anim. B. ii. c. 41; and Oppian, Halieut. B. iii. l. 435.] live upon sea-weed, while others feed on the oyster, slime, and the flesh of other fish. The more distinctive mark is a forked beard, that projects beneath the lower lip. The lutarius, [Hardouin says that it is larger than the sea-mullet; and that it dwells in muddy or slimy spots in the vicinity of the sea-shore.] or mud-mullet, is held in the lowest esteem of all. This last is always accompanied [Aristotle, Hist. Anim. B. viii. c. 5.] by another fish, known as the sargus, and where the mullet stirs up the mud, the other finds aliment for its own sustenance. The mullet that is found on the coast is not [Probably from the fact of its living in the mud. “Doctors differ” on this point. Aristotle, Hist. Anim. B. viii. c. 16, says that shore-fish are superior to those caught out at sea; while Seneca, on the other hand, Nat. Quæst. B. iii. c. 18, says that rock-fish and those caught out at sea are the best.] highly esteemed, and the most esteemed of all have a strong flavour [He would almost seem to imply by this that they feed upon shell-fish: but Hardouin has a note to the effect, that Pliny does not mean that they live on shell-fish, as it would be impossible for them to break the shell to devour the fish within, but only that they have the same flavour as shell-fish. But query as to this explanation.] of shell-fish. Fenestella is of opinion, that this fish received its name of mullet mullus from its resemblance to the colour of the red or mullet-coloured shoes. [On the other hand, Isidorus says that the mullet-coloured shoes were so called from the colour of the fish, which, indeed, is most probable. These shoes were made of a kind of red Parthian leather, probably not unlike our morocco leather. Festus seems to say that they were worn in general by all the patricians; but the passage of Varro which he quotes, only shows that they were worn by the curule magistrates, the consul, prætor, and curule ædile.] The mullet spawns three [Hence their Greek name, τρίγλα, according to Oppian, Halieut. B. i. l. 590.] times a year: at all events, the fry makes its appearance that number of times. The masters in gastronomy inform us, that the mullet, while dying, assumes a variety of colours and a succession of shades, and that the hue of the red scales, growing paler and paler, gradually changes, more especially if it is looked at enclosed in glass. [Seneca has a passage on this subject, Quæst. Nat. B. iii. c. 18, which strongly bespeaks the barbarous tastes of the Romans. He says: “A mullet even, if just caught, is thought little of, unless it is allowed to die in the hand of your guest. They are carried about enclosed in globes of glass, and their colour is watched as they die, which is changed by the struggles of death into various shades and hues.” And again: “There is nothing, you say, more beautiful than the colours of the dying mullet; as it struggles and breathes forth its life, it is first purple, and then a paleness gradually comes over it; and then, placed as it is between life and death, an uncertain hue comes over it.”] M. Apicius, a man who displayed a remarkable degree of ingenuity in everything relating to luxury, was of opinion, that it was a most excellent plan to let the mullet die in the pickle known as the “garum of the allies” [This anchovy, pickle, or fish-sauce, will be found more fully spoken of in B. xxxi. c. 44.] —for we find that even this has found a surname—and he proposed a prize for any one who should invent a new sauce, [Alecem. See B. xxxi. c. 44. Seneca speaks of this cruel custom of pickling fish alive, Quæst. Nat. B. iii. c. 17. “Other fish, again, they kill in sauces, and pickle them alive. There are some persons who look upon it as quite incredible that a fish should be able to live under-ground. How much more so would it appear to them, if they were to hear of a fish swimming in sauce, and that the chief dish of the banquet was killed at the banquet, feeding the eye before it does the gullet?”] made from the liver of this fish. I find it much easier to relate this fact, than to state who it was that gained the prize.

Chap. 31.—Enormous Prices of Some Fish.

Asinius Celer, [He may have been the son of C. Asinius Gallus, who was consul B.C. 8; but he does not appear to have ever been consul himself.] a man of consular rank, and remarkable for his prodigal expenditure on this fish, bought one at Rome, during the reign of Caius, [The reign of the Emperor Caligula.] at the price of eight thousand sesterces. [Juvenal, Sat. iv. l. 15, speaks of a mullet being bought for 6000 sesterces, a thousand for every pound, and Suetonius tells us that in the reign of Tiberius three mullets were sold for 30,000 sesterces. It is in allusion to this kind of extravagance that Juvenal says, in the same Satire, that it is not unlikely that the fisherman could be bought as a slave for a smaller sum than the fish itself. At the above rate, each of these mullets sold for about £70 of our money.] A reflection upon such a fact as this will at once lead us to turn our thoughts to those who, making loud complaints against luxury, have lamented that a single cook cost more money to buy than a horse; while at the present day a cook is only to be obtained for the same sum that a triumph would cost, and a fish is only to be purchased at what was formerly the price for a cook! indeed, there is hardly any living being held in higher esteem than the man who understands how, in the most scientific fashion, to get rid of his master’s property.

(18.) Licinius Mucianus relates, that in the Red Sea there was caught a mullet eighty [Cuvier says that although the mullet of the Indian Seas is in general larger than ours, it is never found at all approaching the weight here mentioned.] pounds in weight. What a price would have been paid for it by our epicures, if it had only been found off the shores in the vicinity of our city!

Chap. 32.—That the Same Kinds Are Not Everywhere Equally Esteemed.

There is this also in the nature of fish, that some are more highly esteemed in one place, and some in another; such, for instance, as the coracinus [The bolty of the modern Egyptians, as previously mentioned.] in Egypt, the zeus, [Or Jove-fish. Cuvier says that Gillius has “applied the name of “faber” to the dory, or fish of Saint Peter, and has stated that the Dalmatians, who call it the “forga,” pretend that they can find in its bones all the instruments of a forge. After him, other modern naturalists have called the same fish Zeus faber; but nothing, Cuvier says, goes to prove that the dory is the fish so called by the ancients. The epithet even of “rare,” given to it by Ovid, Halieut. l. 112, is far from applicable to the dory, which is common enough in the Mediterranean. If, indeed, the χαλκεὺς of the Greeks were the same as the “faber,” as, indeed, we have reason to suppose, it would be something in favour of the dory, as Athenæus, B. vii., says that the χαλκεὺς is of a round shape: but then, on the other hand, Oppian, Halieut. B. v. l. 135, ranks it among the rock-fish which feed near rocks with herbage on them; while the dory is found only in the deep sea.] also called the faber, [Or “blacksmith.”] at Gades, the salpa, [Cuvier says that this fish has still the same name in Italy; that it is called the “saupe” in Provence, and the “vergadelle” in Languedoc, being the Sparus salpa of Linnæus; and that it still answers to all the ancient characteristics of the salpa, eating grass and filling its stomach, and having numerous red lines upon the body. It is common, and bad eating, but is no better at Ivica, the ancient Ebusus, than anywhere else. M. De la Roche, when describing the fishes of that island, says expressly that the flesh of the saupe is but very little esteemed there. Ovid, Halieut. l. 122, speaks of it as “deservedly held in little esteem.”] in the vicinity of Ebusus, [See B. iii. c. 11.] which is considered elsewhere an unclean fish, and can nowhere [Neither at Ebusus nor anywhere else.] be thoroughly cooked, wherever found, without being first beaten with a stick: in Aquitania, again, the river salmon [Hardouin remarks, that Pliny and Ausonius are the only Latin writers that mention this fish; while not one among the Greeks speaks of it. It was probably a native of regions too far to the north for them to know much about it. In this country it holds the same rank that the scarus and the mullet seem to have held at the Roman tables.] is preferred to all the fish that swim in the sea.

Chap. 33.—Gills and Scales.

Some fishes have numerous gills, others again single [He must mean single ones, on each side of the head. Cuvier remarks, that the present passage is from a longer one in Aristotle, Hist. Anim. B. ii. c. 13, which, however, has come down to us in such a corrupt and fragmentary state, that it is totally unintelligible, or, at all events, does not correspond with modern experience. No fish, he says, is known to us that has one or two gills only. The Lophii of the system of Linnæus have three gills on each side, and the greater number of fish four, with a half one attached to the opercule. Some cartilaginous fish, again, have five or six, and the lampreys seven.] ones, others double; it is by means of these that they discharge the water that has entered the mouth. A sign of old age [Aristotle, Hist. Anim. B. iii. c. 10.] is the hardness of the scales, which are not alike in all. There are two lakes [The modern Lago di Como, and Lago Maggiore. See B. iii. c. 23.] of Italy at the foot of the Alps, called Larius and Verbanus, in which there are to be seen every year, at the rising of the Vergiliæ, [See c., as to the Vergiliæ.] fish remarkable for the number of their scales, and the exceeding sharpness [Cuvier says, that in various species of the cyprinus, and more especially the rubellio, the Cyprinus rutilus of Linnæus, the roach, the Cyprinus jeses of Linnæus, and the bream, the Cyprinus brama of Linnæus, the male has, during the spawning season, little warts adhering to the skin and scales. This appearance has been remarked in especial on a species found in the lakes of Lombardy, known there as the “pigo,” and similar to the roach of other countries. It is most probable that it is to this appearance that Pliny alludes. Rondelet, in his book on Fishes, gives a representation of it, and calls it “pigus,” or “cyprinus clavatus;” but he wrongly, like Pliny, takes it to be a peculiar genus of fish.] of them, strongly resembling hob-nails [“Clavorum caligarium”—“nails for the caliga.” This was a strong, heavy sandal, worn by the Roman soldiers. It was worn by the centurions, but not by the superior officers; and from the use of it, the common soldiers, including the centurions, were distinguished by the name of “caligati.” The Emperor Caligula received that cognomen when a boy, in consequence of wearing the “caliga,” and being inured to the life of a common soldier. The hob-nails with which the “caliga” was studded are mentioned again in B. xxii. c. 46, and B. xxxiv. c. 41. Josephus tells us of the death of a Roman centurion, which was occasioned by these nails. As he was running over the marble pavement of the temple of Jerusalem, his foot slipped, and he was unable to rise, upon which he was overpowered by the Jews, and slain. After the decline of the Roman empire, the caliga was no longer worn by the soldiers, but was assumed by the monks and recluses.] in appearance; these fish, however, are only to be seen during that month, [Dalechamps says, that in a similar manner, in the lake known by the name of Paladru, fish of most delicate flavour, called “umblæ,” were to be taken in the month of December, and at no other part of the year; so, too, the alausæ, which are found in the Rhine, near Strasburg, in the month of May only, and at no other time.] and no longer.

Chap. 34. (19.)—Fishes Which Have a Voice.—Fishes Without Gills.

Arcadia produces a wonder in its fish called exocœtus, [Ἀπὸ τοῦ ἔξω κοιτᾶν “from its sleeping out of the water.” This fish is also mentioned by Theophrastus, in his Fragment on the “Fish that live on dry land;” by Clearchus the Peripatetic, as quoted by Athenæus, B. viii.; Oppian, in his Halieutics, B. i. l. 158; and Ælian, Hist. Anim. B. ix. c. 36. The fish, however, mentioned by all these authorities, is a sea-fish, while that of Pliny, being found in Arcadia, must, of necessity, be a river fish. The proper name of the fish here mentioned by him was ποικιλίας, Hardouin says, so called from the variety of its colours. Cuvier says, that the fish here mentioned is not the Exocœtus of Linnæus, which is one of the flying fish, but is clearly of opinion that it is one of the genus Blennius, or Gobio, that is alluded to; for these small fish are often to be found left on the shore when the waters retire, and have the property of being able to remain alive for a considerable time without water.] from the fact that it comes ashore to sleep. In the neighbourhood of the river Clitorius, [In the river Aroanius, which falls into the Clitorius. Pausanias mentions this story, but adds, that he never could hear the fish, although he often went there to listen. Mnaseas of Patræ, an author quoted by Athenæus, B. viii., also mentions these vocal fishes.] this fish is said to be gifted with powers of speech, and to have no gills; [Cuvier understands this to mean only, that the openings of the gills are remarkably small: for, as he says, there is no fish whatever without gills. It is very possible, however, that Pliny may have mistranslated a passage found in Athenæus, and quoted from Clearchus the Peripatetic, in which he says that some fish have a voice, and yet have no throat, βρόγχον; which may have, possibly, been mistaken by our author for βράγχια, “gills.”] by some writers it is called the adonis.

Chap. 35.—Fishes Which Come on Land. The Proper Time for Catching Fish.

Those fish, also, which are known by the name of sea-mice, [“Marini mures.” Cuvier says, that according to Oppian, Halieut. B. v. c. 174, et seq., the sea-mice, small as they are, attack other fish, and offer resistance even to man himself. Their skin, he says, is very solid, and their teeth very strong. Theophrastus names them along with seals and birds, as feeding both on land and at sea. Cuvier is somewhat at a loss whether to pronounce them, with Dalechamps, to be a kind of turtle. If so, he considers that this would be the little turtle, Testudo coriacea of Linnæus, which is by no means uncommon in the Mediterranean. He suggests, however, that there are equal grounds for taking it to be the Flasco psaro, or Tetrodon lineatus of Linnæus.] as well as the polypi [The Sepia octopodia of Linnæus.] and the murænæ, [The Muræna helena of Linnæus. This animal, Cuvier says, like the eel, is able to live out of water, in consequence of the minute size of the branchial orifices, as Theophrastus very accurately explains. It is a common opinion that they come out of the water in search of others of their kind; but Spallanzani was informed by the fishermen of Comacchio, that this hardly ever is the case, and that they will only leave the water when compelled. The polypus also crawls very briskly on the shore when it has been thrown up by the tide, and moves with considerable swiftness.] are in the habit of coming ashore—besides which, there is in the rivers of India [This is also stated by the author of the treatise, De Mirab. Auscult. c. 72; and Theophrastus, in his work on the “Fishes that can live on land,” says, that these Indian fishes resemble the mullet. Cuvier says, that these fish are those known as the various species of the genus Ophicephalus of Bloch, which bear a strong resemblance to the mullet in the head and body. Mr. Hamilton Buchanan, in his “History of the Fishes of Bengal,” says, that these fish crawl on the grass to so great a distance from their rivers, that the people absolutely believe that they must have fallen from heaven.] one kind that does this, and then leaps back again into the water—for they are found to pass over into standing waters and streams. Most fishes have an evident instinct, which teaches them where to spawn in safety; as in such places there are no enemies found to devour their young, while at the same time the waves are much less violent. It will be still more a matter of surprise, to find that they thus have an appreciation of cause and effect, and understand the regular recurrence of periods, when we reflect how few persons there are that know that the most favourable time for taking fish is while the sun is passing through the sign of Pisces. [Or the “Fishes.” As if, indeed, Hardouin says, the resemblance of name given to the constellation could have any effect upon the fish!]

Chap. 36. (20.)—Classification of Fishes, According to the Shape of the Body.

Some sea-fish are flat, such, for instance, as the rhombus, [The turbot, Pleuronectes maximus of Linnæus.] the sole, [Pleuronectes solea of Linnæus.] and the sea-sparrow; [“Passer.” Probably our “plaice”—the Pleuronectes platessa of Linnæus.] which last only differs from the rhombus in the lateral position of the body. The rhombus lies with the right side upwards, [The pleuronectes in general, Cuvier says, have the two eyes situate on the same side of the body. The turbot has them on the left side, and lies on the sand on the right side, while the plaice or the flounder has the eyes on the right, and lies on the left side—the reverse of what Pliny says.] while in the sea-sparrow the left side is uppermost. Some sea-fish, again, are long, as the muræna and the conger.

Chap. 37.—The Fins of Fish, and Their Mode of Swimming.

Hence it is that there is a difference, [Aristotle, Hist. Anim. B. i. c. 6.] also, in the fins of fish, which have been given them to serve in place of feet, none having more than four, [By this Pliny means, Cuvier says, only the symmetrical fins, or pairs of fins, the pectoral namely, which are in place of arms, and the ventral, which are instead of feet; of which, in fact, no fish has more than two pairs. Pliny does not include in this statement the dorsal, anal, and pectoral fins.] some two [Eels and congers, for instance, which have but one pair.] only, and others none. [Murænæ and lampreys.] It is in Lake Fucinus [See B. iii. c. 17.] only that there is a fish found that has eight fins [Cuvier thinks that there can be no question that he is speaking here of some mollusc or crustaceous animal.] for swimming. Those fishes which are long and slimy, have only two at most, such, for instance, as eels and congers: others, again, have none, such as the muræna, which is also without gills. [Murænæ, like eels, have gills, but the orifice, Cuvier says, is much smaller than in the eel, and the opercula, under the skin, are so small as to be hardly perceptible; indeed, so much so, that modern naturalists, Lacepède, for instance, have denied the fact of their existence.] All these fish [Aristotle, De Part. Anim. B. iv. c. 13, and Hist. Anim. B. i. c. 6.] make their way in the sea by an undulatory motion of the body, just as serpents do on land; on dry land, also, they are able to crawl along, and hence those of this nature are more long-lived than the others. Some of the flat-fish, also, have no fins, the pastinacæ, [Or sting-ray. On the contrary, Cuvier says, the pastinaca, more than any other ray, has large pectoral fins, horizontally placed; but they adhere so closely to the body that they do not appear to be fins, unless closely examined.] for instance—for these swim broad-wise—those, also, which are known as the “soft” fish, such as the polypi, for their feet [By this name, Cuvier says, he calls the tentacles or feelers, which adhere to the head of the polypus, and which it uses equally for the purpose of swimming or crawling.] serve them in stead of fins.

Chap. 38. (21.)—Eels.

Eels live eight [Spallanzani, in his “Nat. Hist. of the Eel in the Lagunes of Comacchio,” says, that immediately after their birth they retreat to the Lagunes, and at the end of five years re-enter the river Po.] years; they are able to survive out of water as much as six days, [Eighty or a hundred hours at most, Spallanzani says.] when a north-east wind blows; but when the south wind prevails, not so many. In winter, [Cold, or a foul state of the water, Cuvier says, is very destructive to the eel.] they cannot live if they are in very shallow water, nor yet if the water is troubled. Hence it is that they are taken more especially about the rising of the Vergiliæ, [Or Pleiades. See c..] when the rivers are mostly in a turbid state. These animals seek their food at night; they are the only fish the bodies of which, when dead, do not float [Aristotle, Hist. Anim. B. viii. c. 75, says the same, and likewise that they feed mostly at night. The reason for their not floating when dead, he says, is their peculiar conformation; the belly being so remarkably small that the water cannot find an entrance; added to which they have no fat upon them.] upon the surface.

(22.) There is a lake called Benacus, [See B. iii. c. 23.] in the territory of Verona, in Italy, through which the river Mincius flows. [See B. iii. c. 20.] At the part of it whence this river issues, once a year, and mostly in the month of October, the lake is troubled, evidently by the constellations [The setting of the Pleiades or the rising of Arcturus. See B. ii. c. 47.] of autumn, and the eels are heaped together [Spallanzani informs us that the fishermen of the Lagunes of Comacchio form with reeds small chambers, by means of which they take the eels when endeavouring to re-enter the river Po; in these such vast multitudes are collected, that they are absolutely to be seen above the surface of the water.] by the waves, and rolled on by them in such astonishing multitudes, that single masses of them, containing more than a thousand in number, are often taken in the chambers [Excipulis.] which are formed in the bed of the river for that purpose.