The morning call., 1894-09-09

were migrating across country and walk
ing just as nearly any animal does, the fms
being used as feet, the tail dragged along.
"The fish were making for the pools {;
hundreds had already reached them and
were swimming about, stirring up the
mud. They did not turn out for anything,
but crawled through the camp, the men
even shaking them out of their blankets
and picking them up for food when the
camp was finally astir. had the novel
experience of fishing on dry land, or pick
Ing up fish that were trying to walk over
me-"
The habit of this fish is now well known.
= The no ovement is caused by the drying I'D
OF the streams, upon which the fish DELHI
erately leave the muddy and fast evapOr-
ating water and impelled by some extraor-
dlnary instinct crawl overland in the d.
rectiOn of pools where the water supply is
ample. These water migrations are often
made over long distances, and are followed
by focks of birds that prey upon them
Sometimes the fish will even Climb trees,
and for the time being are as unflshlike as
one can possibly imagine. 1t was gener-
ally supposed for some time that the fishes
carried a supply of water to moisten the
gills during the trip, but it is found not to
be so, the little animals breathing air di-
rectly at this time and becoming truly
amphibious.
In the islands of Sumatra and Borneo
v, q
friend of the writer once had singular
experience with it.
II was spending some time" he said,
"at little native village on the south
coast, and amused myself by fishing and
trying our methods on the native fish,
One day was walking along shore, when
L came TO an estuary or the mouth of a
little river about which a great fiat
stretched away. 1t was dead low tide, and
all over the partly submerged mud bank
were roots of m angroves and other trees
which served as peTches for various birds,
80 as l had my gun with NE | was tempted
out on the mud fiat, where / sat down on
one OF the maDgrove roots and waited for
game. which was flying about in all direc-
tiOns.
LAS l sat there, wondering how long
man could stand such burning heat,
noticed number of objects which I con-
sidered frogs jumping about, and taking
comparatively long leaps, coming down
with splash into the water OF some pool,
then crawling out TO move along on the
iast-baEiDg mud. l had very light bird
gun loaded with fine shot that had used
at nisht for big and small bats. and L fired
a cartridge at one of the supposed frogs
rolling it over. But when / picked it up
what was my amaZement to find that it was
not frog at all, but fish, and one of the
most c0mieal- looking fellows l had ever
seen. 1t was about six inches long, with a
large. prominent head. its eyes protruding,
giving it laugbable appearance. lis
color was a dark olive, and the most re-
markable feature was its side fms, which
were enlarged so as to serve the purpose
of feet, and by using them the Periopthal-
mus moved along by series of comical
jumps.
THE fish were not left by the tide, rs
they could easily have gone out with it,
but they remained on the mud fat in the
tnll glare OF the sun for "a definite purpose,
which was TO feed on various small era bs
and other animals which were stranded
on the flats. The fish were as amphibious
as frog. and were not in the least dis.