CHAPTER XIX. THE INSTINCTS AND PECULIARITIES OF FISHES.

 The statements which Ovid has made as to the instincts of fish, in the work[152] of his known as the “Treatise on Fishes,” appear to me truly marvellous. The scarus, for instance, when enclosed in the wicker kype, makes no effort to escape with its head, nor does it attempt to thrust its muzzle¹ between the oziers; but turning its tail towards them, it enlarges the orifices with repeated blows therefrom, and so makes its escape backwards². Should, too, another scarus, from without, chance to see it thus struggling within the kype, it will take the tail of the other in its mouth, and so aid it in its efforts to escape. The lupus, again, when surrounded with the net, furrows³ the sand with its tail, and so conceals⁴ itself, until the net has passed over it. The mur?na, trusting in the slippery smoothness of its rounded back, boldly faces the meshes⁵ of the net, and by repeatedly wriggling⁶ its body, makes its escape. The polyp makes for the hooks, and without swallowing the bait, clasps it with its feelers; nor does it quit its hold until it has eaten off the bait, or perceives itself being drawn⁷ out of the water by the rod.

 

The mullet, too, is aware that within the bait there is a 175 hook concealed⁸, and is on its guard against the ambush⁹; still, however, so great is its voracity¹⁰, that it beats the hook with its tail, and strikes away from it the bait. The lupus, again, shows less foresight¹¹ and address, but repentance¹² at its imprudence arms it with mighty¹³ strength; for, when caught by the hook, it flounders from side to side, and so widens the wound, till at last the insidious¹⁴ hook falls from its mouth. The mur?na not only swallows the hook, but catches at the line with its teeth, and so gnaws¹⁵ it asunder¹⁶. The anthias, Ovid says, the moment it finds itself caught by the hook, turns its body with its back downwards¹⁹, upon which there is a sharp knife-like fin¹⁸, and so cuts the line asunder.

 

Trebius Niger informs us that whenever the loligo is seen darting²⁰ above the surface of the water, it portends²¹ a change of weather: that the xiphias, or, in other words, the sword-fish, has a sharp-pointed muzzle, with which it is able to pierce the sides of a ship and send it to the bottom: instances of which have been known near Cotte, a place in Mauritania, not far from the river Lixus. He says, too, that the loligo sometimes darts²² above the surface, in such vast numbers, as to sink the ships upon which they fall.

 

At many of the country-seats belonging to the Emperor the fish eat[153] from the hand. In the fountain of Jupiter at Labranda, there are eels²³ which eat from the hand, and wear earrings²⁴.[154]

 

At Myra, too, in Lycia, the fish in the Fountain of Apollo, known as Surium, appear and give oracular presages²⁶, when thrice summoned by the sound of a flute²⁷. If they seize the flesh thrown to them with avidity, it is a good omen¹⁷ for the person who consults them; but if, on the other hand, they 176 flap at it with their tails, it is considered an evil presage²⁵. At Hierapolis,[155] in Syria, the fish in the Lake of Venus obey the voice of the officers of the temple: bedecked with ornaments²⁸ of gold, they come at their call, fawn²⁹ upon them while they are scratched, and open their mouths so wide as to admit of the insertion of the hand.

1 muzzle   

n.鼻口部；口套；枪(炮)口；vt.使缄默

参考例句：

• He placed the muzzle of the pistol between his teeth.他把手枪的枪口放在牙齿中间。
• The President wanted to muzzle the press.总统企图遏制新闻自由。

2 backwards   

adv.往回地，向原处，倒，相反，前后倒置地

参考例句：

• He turned on the light and began to pace backwards and forwards.他打开电灯并开始走来走去。
• All the girls fell over backwards to get the party ready.姑娘们迫不及待地为聚会做准备。

3 furrows   

n.犁沟( furrow的名词复数 )；（脸上的）皱纹v.犁田，开沟( furrow的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• I could tell from the deep furrows in her forehead that she was very disturbed by the news. 从她额头深深的皱纹上，我可以看出她听了这个消息非常不安。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Dirt bike trails crisscrossed the grassy furrows. 越野摩托车的轮迹纵横交错地布满条条草沟。 来自辞典例句

4 conceals   

v.隐藏，隐瞒，遮住( conceal的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• He conceals his worries behind a mask of nonchalance. 他装作若无其事，借以掩饰内心的不安。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Drunkenness reveals what soberness conceals. 酒醉吐真言。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 meshes   

网孔( mesh的名词复数 )； 网状物； 陷阱； 困境

参考例句：

• The net of Heaven has large meshes, but it lets nothing through. 天网恢恢，疏而不漏。
• This net has half-inch meshes. 这个网有半英寸见方的网孔。

6 wriggling   

v.扭动，蠕动，蜿蜒行进( wriggle的现在分词 )；（使身体某一部位）扭动；耍滑不做，逃避（应做的事等）；蠕蠕

参考例句：

• The baby was wriggling around on my lap. 婴儿在我大腿上扭来扭去。
• Something that looks like a gray snake is wriggling out. 有一种看来象是灰蛇的东西蠕动着出来了。 来自辞典例句

7 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

8 concealed   

a.隐藏的，隐蔽的

参考例句：

• The paintings were concealed beneath a thick layer of plaster. 那些画被隐藏在厚厚的灰泥层下面。
• I think he had a gun concealed about his person. 我认为他当时身上藏有一支枪。

9 ambush   

n.埋伏(地点)；伏兵；v.埋伏；伏击

参考例句：

• Our soldiers lay in ambush in the jungle for the enemy.我方战士埋伏在丛林中等待敌人。
• Four men led by a sergeant lay in ambush at the crossroads.由一名中士率领的四名士兵埋伏在十字路口。

10 voracity   

n.贪食，贪婪

参考例句：

• Their voracity is legendary and even the most hardened warriors cannot repress a shiver if one speaks about them. 他们的贪食是传奇性的，甚至强壮的战士也会因为提起他们而无法抑制的颤抖。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He ate with the voracity of a starving man. 他饿鬼似的贪婪地吃着。 来自互联网

11 foresight   

n.先见之明，深谋远虑

参考例句：

• The failure is the result of our lack of foresight.这次失败是由于我们缺乏远虑而造成的。
• It required a statesman's foresight and sagacity to make the decision.作出这个决定需要政治家的远见卓识。

12 repentance   

n.懊悔

参考例句：

• He shows no repentance for what he has done.他对他的所作所为一点也不懊悔。
• Christ is inviting sinners to repentance.基督正在敦请有罪的人悔悟。

13 mighty   

adj.强有力的；巨大的

参考例句：

• A mighty force was about to break loose.一股巨大的力量即将迸发而出。
• The mighty iceberg came into view.巨大的冰山出现在眼前。

14 insidious   

adj.阴险的，隐匿的，暗中为害的，（疾病）不知不觉之间加剧

参考例句：

• That insidious man bad-mouthed me to almost everyone else.那个阴险的家伙几乎见人便说我的坏话。
• Organized crime has an insidious influence on all who come into contact with it.所有和集团犯罪有关的人都会不知不觉地受坏影响。

15 gnaws   

咬( gnaw的第三人称单数 )； （长时间） 折磨某人； （使）苦恼； （长时间）危害某事物

参考例句：

• Time, whose tooth gnaws away everything else, is powerless against truth. 时间，它的利齿可咬碎万物，但对真理却无能为力。
• The water gnaws at the shoreline. 海水侵蚀海岸线。

16 asunder   

adj.分离的，化为碎片

参考例句：

• The curtains had been drawn asunder.窗帘被拉向两边。
• Your conscience,conviction,integrity,and loyalties were torn asunder.你的良心、信念、正直和忠诚都被扯得粉碎了。

17 omen   

n.征兆，预兆；vt.预示

参考例句：

• The superstitious regard it as a bad omen.迷信的人认为那是一种恶兆。
• Could this at last be a good omen for peace?这是否终于可以视作和平的吉兆了？

18 fin   

n.鳍；(飞机的)安定翼

参考例句：

• They swim using a small fin on their back.它们用背上的小鳍游动。
• The aircraft has a long tail fin.那架飞机有一个长长的尾翼。

19 downwards   

adj./adv.向下的（地），下行的（地）

参考例句：

• He lay face downwards on his bed.他脸向下伏在床上。
• As the river flows downwards,it widens.这条河愈到下游愈宽。

20 darting   

v.投掷，投射( dart的现在分词 )；向前冲，飞奔

参考例句：

• Swallows were darting through the clouds. 燕子穿云急飞。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• Swallows were darting through the air. 燕子在空中掠过。 来自辞典例句

21 portends   

v.预示( portend的第三人称单数 )；预兆；给…以警告；预告

参考例句：

• Fame portends trouble for men just as fattening does for pigs. 人怕出名猪怕壮。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• It portends we are in danger. 这预示我们陷入危险。 来自互联网

22 darts   

n.掷飞镖游戏；飞镖( dart的名词复数 )；急驰，飞奔v.投掷，投射( dart的第三人称单数 )；向前冲，飞奔

参考例句：

• His darts trophy takes pride of place on the mantelpiece. 他将掷镖奖杯放在壁炉顶上最显著的地方。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I never saw so many darts in a bodice! 我从没见过紧身胸衣上纳了这么多的缝褶！ 来自《简明英汉词典》

23 eels   

abbr. 电子发射器定位系统（=electronic emitter location system）

参考例句：

• Eels have been on the feed in the Lower Thames. 鳗鱼在泰晤士河下游寻食。
• She bought some eels for dinner. 她买回一些鳗鱼做晚餐。

24 earrings   

n.耳环( earring的名词复数 )；耳坠子

参考例句：

• a pair of earrings 一对耳环
• These earrings snap on with special fastener. 这付耳环是用特制的按扣扣上去的。 来自《简明英汉词典》

25 presage   

n.预感，不祥感；v.预示

参考例句：

• The change could presage serious problems.这变化可能预示着有严重问题将要发生。
• The lowering clouds presage a storm.暗云低沉是暴风雨的前兆。

26 presages   

v.预示，预兆( presage的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• This sign presages rains. 这种迹象是下雨的预兆。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• And each presages the bigger pivots ahead in China's course. 每一件也都预示着中国今后路线的更大转机。 来自互联网

27 flute   

n.长笛；v.吹笛

参考例句：

• He took out his flute, and blew at it.他拿出笛子吹了起来。
• There is an extensive repertoire of music written for the flute.有很多供长笛演奏的曲目。

28 ornaments   

n.装饰( ornament的名词复数 )；点缀；装饰品；首饰v.装饰，点缀，美化( ornament的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The shelves were chock-a-block with ornaments. 架子上堆满了装饰品。
• Playing the piano sets up resonance in those glass ornaments. 一弹钢琴那些玻璃饰物就会产生共振。 来自《简明英汉词典》

29 fawn   

n.未满周岁的小鹿；v.巴结，奉承

参考例句：

• A fawn behind the tree looked at us curiously.树后面一只小鹿好奇地看着我们。
• He said you fawn on the manager in order to get a promotion.他说你为了获得提拔，拍经理的马屁。