Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1875-02-05
BRATTLEBORO, VT, FRIDAY, FEBRUARY g. 1875.

honor of being the best beloved by its fc,
lows. Wonderful tales are told of its pow.
ers Of intonaton, and although it was in
great demand for tho table. the men wcr,
10th TO take IL In consequence ui the wall,
and modns il gave vent 10 whcn captured
AT other times, when free, lis Npirc rrs'
from the sea clear rs belt, Hnd raVishin
In the sweetness of its melody.
The wel.kuown purnarCs are noted nl
and wide for The Strange Sound, they pro.
duce, and as yet the peculiar mechanism
has moi been clearly demonstrated. Al
times the sound is not unpleasant. and at
others it resembles the barking Of daa
or the grating Of two rough substance.
| This may be The case in some species, bat
have held fish found in the southern
waters, and similar TO our perch, in my
| hand, and listened to the sounds, aud they
seemed to lie produced by a movement oi
| the jaws OF throat, as the lips and month
protruded at every sound II uttered; bat il
is not unlikely that they are produced by
! grinding The teeth with quick motion in
trying to escape. On the Jersey coast the
Prionotns pHctHs is called the pig or hog
fish, on account Of its continual blrkin1 81.
II Is drawn in by the net and in almost
every section Of the country we find these
localisms all tending to represent the vocll
tastes Of the finny population.
In the days of old Rome the murcna-.
or sea cells, were supposed to have u rcau.
lar language, Glow and sweet says an old
writer, an with an intonation $, rascio-
ating that few could resist lis influence ,'
and ii is said that the Emperor Augustus
pretended to understand their words. 1T is
known, however, that he did devote mnrh
OF bis time to the cultivation of these crca
lures, not for hypothesis Of language. but
because they were highly esteemed in \
gastronomic point of view In fact, 50 far
was this carried that some epicurc, would
only eat those that had been flttcned on
human flesh.
Strange sounds are oflen heard also rs
ing from the waters OF our own coasts. that
would be apt 10 astOnish the superstili1ns
listener il he were not acquainted with the
unofiending cause Of the disturbance.
Sometimes ii rises into the air like the
bang OF huge drum, and again seems to
steal over the waves with a low murmur-
ing wall and il you were 10 place yoay
ear close to the surface Il strange sound,
would appear 10 come from five or six dic-
ferent places. Sclmcn are oIlon s'a:tlcd
by the "boom, boom" that seems 10 steal
over the vessel, seeming to their ear, more
like the drum of some long lost crew than
the voice of an insignificant member OF the
family Of fishes; for such IL T., and well
known as the bearded drum li.h. But how
| 1t produces the queer musical note, i q
something that it would bc well for onr
"6sh com mmission" todiscover next summer
on the Sound.
Still another faithful satellite of Euterpe
is found in the noisy magrC. II makes a
strange cooling moan, accompan ell by 3
sharp croak that can be heard at depth OF
$50 feet. The fish attains length of about
six feet and weighs forty pounds. Wha,
! these sounds are made for we know not
bu; on the principle that all thing, arc
made for some particular purpose they
must have meaning. That the imperiec
voice of the fish is used 10 express discom.
fort and pain have no doubt. as in uumer.
Gus experiments on a fish fuund in the
| Gulf of Mexico. called the orurt finn,
that the voice was used and modulolcJ a.
with other animals. When touched will
the knife the erunts that ii gave vent t,
fairly rose to a shrek, ard whe . diving II.
moans and sobs were almost di,acgecabl,
human.
shall never forget the first one of tbes
veritable porkerS that caught. Thirkin.
that my bait needed rcpleni,hina. haule,
in and found nicely hooked q arnut ,p,