t hither and
thither, live, darting gleams of gold and azure and amethyst. Now and
again a long, black shadow would sail slowly over the scene of
freakish life--the shadow of a passing albacore or barracouta.
Instantly the shining fish would hide themselves among the shining
shells, and every movement, save that of the unconsciously waving
weeds, would be stilled. But the sinister shadow would go by, and
straightway the sea-floor would be alive again, busy with its affairs
of pursuit and flight.

The floor of the cove was uneven, by reason of small, shell-covered
rocks and stones being strewn over it at haphazard. From under the
slightly overhanging base of one of these stones sprouted what seemed
a cluster of yellowish gray, pink-mottled weed-stems, which sprawled
out inertly upon the mottled bottom. Over the edge of the stone came
swimming slowly one of the gold-and-azure fish, its jewelled,
impassive eyes on the watch for some small prey. Up from the bottom,
swift as a whip-lash, darted one of those inert-looking weed-stems,
and fastened about the bright fish just behind the gills.

Fiercely the shining one struggled, lashing with tail and fins till
the water swirled to a boil over the shell-covered rock, and the
sea-anemones all about shut their gorgeous, greedy flower-cups in a
panic. But the struggle was a vain one. Slowly, inexorably, that
mottled tentacle curled downward with its prey, and a portion of the
under side of the rock became alive! Two ink-black eyes appeared,
bulging, oval, implacable; and between them opened a great, hooked
beak, like a giant parrot's. There was no separate head behind this
gaping beak, but eyes and beak merely marked the blunt end of a
mottled, oblong, sac-like body.

[Illustration: "And the writhing tentacles composed themselves once more
to stillness upon the bottom, awaiting the next careless
passer-by."]

As the victim was drawn down to the waiting beak, among the bases of
the tentacles, all the tentacles awoke to dreadful life, writhing in
aimless excitement, although there was no work for them to do. In a
few seconds the fish was torn asunder and engulfed--those inky eyes
the while unwinking and unmoved. A darker, livid hue passed fleetingly
over the pallid body of the octopus. Then it slipped back under the
shelter of the rock; and the writhing tentacles composed themselves
once more to stillness upon the bottom, awaiting the next careless
passer-by. Once more they see