274 - N A T U' R A L K K T & R Y**
that the po^e^*o£<-emitting founds*. would<*not ■ 'bét * given them, hut
For fomeftSifand -for what ufe,‘ if theyvcpbld-no^foe heard and apprehended
SECT. XII.
Of fl>eU-
by’fifh "of the*'fame ifjtecies ?<®t is afferted -however by fome
moderns tha^fifh do-moUhear' (Rhilpf. Tr anfaéfiorta - fccNi 748, - N°.
4-86)>; and F© -far thë-foxperime-ntsf mentioned* thefeTeem to prove,
that fifh are*- not perfceptible »of* ar-tlbulate founds j: and indeed it
cannot b&^th&Sght that their )brgansiö®btemng|jffbi‘fiied fo&lföfthick
^ mediurn^öeed be^fo quick andMeaigatè as thoMbfecreatures' which
livë in the air; I think it therefore-möft reafonfMerto cbnclude that
•fifti may, and likil^do hear as-miachfe is ne^fiaryTor felf-prefer-
vation, and thatdntercourfe which is requifitë t^afiètnble and con-
neébindividuals of the {axnejpeciê0fi
"Befides the mufcle, limpet,-cockle, wrinkle^andv crabs of all
kinds, ' for better nouriflimént wé have the long--oyfter «(the Locufta
marina Aldrvoand< de Cruft at. chapM, tabvv2), and ’the lbbfler, or
Aftacus vents, much fuperior in delicacy of fodd to the former,
and in fuch plenty on the eoafts of Comwall, thabWell-boats come
to load, and carry them alive to London and^JfipÉërë?'^;#
O f the fhrimp kind, great quantities'are taken m Helföfd harbour,
Mount’s Bay, in calm ^weather. Here we «often; find the her-
mit-lhrimp, bemard, or canceüus, remarkable for-faking: poflêflion
of fome empty ihell, and there fixing his 'habitadomas firmly, as if
it were his own native place; when it marches, it draws the fliell
after i t ; in danger retires wholly into it; and guards. the mouth
with one of its forcipated claws\ That fine Ihrimp,'£72»//« lata
Rondeletii, (lib- 18, chap. 6) rubra, alho maculata, I foundon
Gareg-killas in Mount’s Bay.
O f oyfters there is great plenty in Cornwall; thé beft I have
heard of come from the creeks in Conftantine parifti -bn the river
Hél in Kerrier hundred ; they have them aljfo in all . the navigable
rivers on the louth coaft, always--beft tafted where -there is leaft
communication with the waters which come from mines, ftamping-
mills, and other places infeded with mundic and vitriol. This
fifh has the power of doling the two parts of its Ihell with prodigious
force by means of a ftrong mufcle at the hinge, and Mr. Ca-
rew, (p. 31) with his wonted plealantry, tells us o'f one whole Ihell
being opened as ufual at the time of flood (when thefe fifties it
feems participate and enjoy the returning tide), three mice eagerly
attempted to feize it, and the oyfter clafping faft its Ihell killed
them all. It not only Ihuts its two valves with great ftrength, but
e In the Ipring and fummer feafon the large# 4 Some have erroneoufly imagined that this was
are Sought lor four pence each, fbmetimes lefir, a young lobfter.
in Mount’s Bay.
keeps
, \ Q / B ' ( £■ O. R 275
and (as I have been informed by
a clergyman of great . Veracity,., who had the account froftv aieredi-
table ^e-witneft; to the fad) its <enemies have a Ikilf imparted, to
thein to*cpunj^raft t%‘ filhè^one lay,» a
fiiherman obferved a lobfter to attempt an .oyfter feveral times, but
as foor^a*. th^tobfler appr^^ed,'t|ie(py^e^lhuwl ihbll; £& length
the lobfter, ha^pg^w.aited S l y gre^Uafrtehtfofe till •th&y^fter opened
agaftiAnadf a|Éhift (o rthrow^a'. ftf^e|bfte'e§n thee?gjapjrtg. iftelflir1#
fprung upon its prey, and devoured it.' The polity of fea-animals ']
is*!? i f dfiemj .a I m ^ t y natuSya j . cqntihual s where .the
.in the^fe-fever^faflli^, %ve ,as>tman|^3.rioiis^ ayt^^qppreffiitg, and
devouring,their;in&|i^;^ , a fkeu ring and d , *
•from their more-powerful,antagfonifts-.;.. all impruird-Öy their grepiff'1
ops Maker for their rpütuaf an^ïglpedtve qiréfér^atftgft * We »find
jUQtj the fame univeriai, enmity b)|tw||gn .the^gre^t^aplél' lefs’^ëfi; ter-
ieftrial creatures. ,Somi<g a n ti^ t^ p ’^ d ^ d ^ jfo n ^ ^ v q4fftiyorei|f;
birds iand beafts»of prey tfierejafe*hy land, but;ifo':ïheïfea jth^,egg;s^ *'
^he fpawn, the, fry, thè; fmall, thq -wea^.%afè*dn®thp!| TaaferaL. der
grees the“ common-,t}ana -conftJ^|p?|^,;Tpod,*^d'^jpp^!f|!bfi|^hp
greater, older, and more; powerful. AWhy thepfgrpf&eH
appetites implanted ?,s$,Why ido npt the,,, landman! m onë ^
another with equal .eagernef^, Why^^here - is left.meed, of, anipiaf-
food on the land than on .the fea, becau^vggetahle • food is'<evf^||- <
|where at hand on théAfurface^pfcthe e^rth, and’- the -prpyiih;,n^eatetvf
ofyippgi. can-preferve iiSjOne.^afon what does- fnptpgrpvv but ;will *be
equally wanted in anotlier; the marine- vegetables are^more fparingly
.given, in left variety, atigreater-' depths,' fftlyeö; •tq^tn^.vi©lehc|^^f
theft native element; the meftihfti which, fifti liye;’ihlda moEe.b^yia^f ■
and«c|>ni[^uepfly the Jftesm^r^e^ratiMj than, that of ^od^uutnals;
their digeftion alfo for the generality i(from. the^cpl^i|§,\ of the medium
they live in) is left able to^beai;^tbe tpugÈm^pNand hg'rfti ialts,.,,
of marine plants; fifh therefore muftfhaye;„othe^.ftippbt^s, .and |
the animal food is difperfqd'- inv every^ereek, and;^cranhy^,ias .»the
rich and proper, nouriftiment fpf^the' finny race. ^ Th^pecafions a
vaft eonfumption ’tis true, but* the prpvifion iyatpre ^h§s .made is
equal to it, the fecundity of fifh exceeding all cpnciepti'bn'i--'*>
O f the cetaceous kind there are but few filb^-and their ^ggsTew^'.
in the cartilaginous betwixt fifty and one hundred eggs ; but in all oviparous
fifties (of which claft moft nfh are) the eggs are (carcè'^pme-
rable*, there being found in one cod^fit^is faid^ vq,3 44,0^'' eggs.
O f ftiells we have great quantities, but rathey!store rvarieties than sect.xiiI.
forts on our Corniflh eoafts. Thé fineft are generally .fmall, and in our Of Ms.
• Artedi de partib. Pifc. page 31. ’ Sat. Difpl.' 8vo,. paj^:i3i'!V<4 I- * beft»