. Half hours with fishes, reptiles, and birds . ood, and the skin of the air bladder of some isused as glass, the bones and teeth in buttons and orna-ments, and the oil as light, food, and medicine; in everyland men, women, and children are found obtaining aliving directly from the fishes. The swordfish fishery is a valuable one in New England,where a fleet of vessels follow the swordsmen of the sea. 8o THE SALAMANDERS The harpooner stands upon the end of the bowsprit andplunges his lily iron into the fish as the vessel sails over it. A strange use towhich fishes are putis illustrated by there
. Half hours with fishes, reptiles, and birds . ood, and the skin of the air bladder of some isused as glass, the bones and teeth in buttons and orna-ments, and the oil as light, food, and medicine; in everyland men, women, and children are found obtaining aliving directly from the fishes. The swordfish fishery is a valuable one in New England,where a fleet of vessels follow the swordsmen of the sea. 8o THE SALAMANDERS The harpooner stands upon the end of the bowsprit andplunges his lily iron into the fish as the vessel sails over it. A strange use towhich fishes are putis illustrated by theremora or suckingfish, which has apeculiar suckingdisk upon the topof its head (Fig. 48),by which it attachesitself to sharks, andI have seen it hold-ing on to a largeturtle. The fisher-men of tropicalwaters are said tocapture turtles by fastening a ring about a remoras tail,then by using a long cord releasing it in the vicinity ofa turtle. True to its instinct, the fish attaches itself to thesleeping animal, which is slowly hauled in (Fig. 49).. Fig. 49. — Catching Turtles with Remoras. REPTILESTHE SALAMANDERS Some years ago I found myself deep in the great north-ern forest which covers the Adirondack country, havingstrayed from the beaten trail. All about rose pillarliketrees, moss-grown and ancient, the leaves and branchesof which had fallen for years and remained undisturbed. THE SALAMANDERS 81 Great trunks lay prostrate, matted with a carpet of green,up through which the fronds of ferns and brakes pro-truded. The air was soft and redolent with the odor ofpine and spruce. Everywhere there was something toattract the eye, yet the noticeable feature of this forestwas the silence; hardly a sound broke the stillness savewhen the soft wind rose and some vagrant branch playedupon a neighbor, or the needles of the pine swept the airlike vibrant strings. As I listened, there came om-oram-om-m-m, a peculiar,deep, booming sound from far away. It might have beenthe defiant note of the
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1900, booksubjectzoology, bookyear1906
