The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-07-21
OCTOPUS OR DEVIL FISH.

co 1e eo the squid and the octopus,
80 iar as appearances go, there is little
oIG y OF evils. They are equally hideous
a anir Ugly, put the squid Is an open-water
iEi!iIilai; moving here and there covering.
tong distances, while the octopus cIings
70 one spot, or lives within a certain
r not Us How large the octopus grows is
of fi HtU" r. OUT that 1T attains spread
~ - my Ieet Is believed by those who
1--we seen the eXcrementa of large
nShes and whales. l have handled noa5N
SI spec te fifteen feet across, and be-
ileVe that In open water a man Juo,IId
have little chance against such an am rTuaI
II ehtaugled In Its snake-like arms The
largest authentic specimens known to
Science SfSiience nave radial spread of about
num6er iee az mat AIS is, the arms. eight in
Srch an animal has a body a little larger
that mans head, a small mouth viii
parrot-nke bills, eight long sucker-lined
arms connected at their bases nv q u1eL
ike 1ntegument with which thew swim
When they so desire; but the usual meth
od OF swimming is to vigorously n,1nnn
t the S1p ate by, by which they dart through
trailing behind filling the water with ipit
On the Florida reef the devil fish 10
very common. My first experience Wiz
r .nelna was decidedly unpleasant. was
reachlng up beneath q branch of coral
searching for variety Of cypraea. a shell
common q here, when I felt NV band
seized as though snakes had coiled aho,,t
IL A.. mere was no pain beyond az smart
ing sensation when the suckers had ser
INTO the flesh, and had 1 allowed NV
nand to remain quiet the animal IN.
ooupteqly would have released me. INT
fScailIso, rose up, tearing the coral
oranch from its roots and a large octon,Is
from its ENHANCEMENT which cIune r.
me ike leech. There is the gras+est
olHerepce in individuals. On the Pacific
coast l kept a dozen large specimens in
tank with view of tanning them
ana but one was amenable to treatment'
After several weeks it allowed itself RI
be rubbed between the eyes: hit tho
o.ners were demoniac in looks and appear:
ahce' ana TO plunge my hand into the
squlrmlng menacing mass required more
persistence and pretended Indifference
t 3l anything had ever attempted. The
t feai I. msnes Were OF all sizes. some of
the largest having tentacles two feet In
lehgtn' and all colors. When an
proached the tank waves of color wonfd
nash over them, the fierce STONY ewes
and trembling motion would h e $40
Whlch meant that these gorgons of fha
sea We're preparing to pounce upon me-
one large individual was particularly
aggressive. 1t was a notified white and
black creature, living thunder cIo1id
inlplacaple, resenting to the last any at
tempt. When I introduced NV hand aTd
arm INTO the tank dozens of livid arms
rocky crevices, and every siphon wouI6
De directed at it; but none of the oct1Ini
with the single exception, would attack
me; me untll l made the initial move. This
Il9lVlouai stood not upon the order Of
going, but with eyes cleaning with a
baneful light, every muscle puisatine If
would fling itself across the tank and
and encompass it about with hor a. I,is
smothering suggestion; then rapidly fas se
ten upon the rocks and endeayor to mil
It down. When the animal secured its
release it; but when / allowed If n r rto
tain its supposed prey In no instance
did 1t attempt to insert its bills or bite.
there was always a struggle to release
capped. es-
On the Florida coast on the extre,no
outer keys-Bird. Long, Sand and LoReerre