the wrasse, sir;
some of them are very brightly coloured."

"'Tain't," said Josh gruffly. "What do you want to tell the gentleman
wrong for? It's a wraagh, sir--a curner."

"They call them _wraaghs_ or _curners_, sir," explained Will, colouring
a little; "but the name in the natural history's wrasse."

"Then nat'ral history's wrong," said Josh, in an ill-used way. "A mussy
me! as if I didn't know what a wraagh was."

"Want any squid, Josh?" cried one of the fishermen.

"Ay, hand 'em over," said Josh. "They'll do for bait."

"Got three of 'em," said the man, dashing his great landing-net about in
the water for some reason that Dick did not understand, and directly
after three curious looking, long, slender creatures of the cuttle-fish
tribe were in Dick's net, and he was just drawing them in
when--_spatter_!--one of them discharged a shower of black inky fluid, a
good deal of which fell upon Arthur's trousers, and filled him with
disgust.

"Bang 'em 'bout a bit in the water, Master Richard, sir," cried Josh.
"He didn't half give it 'em; p'r'aps neither of the others arn't made
their cloud."

Instructed by Will, Dick splashed the net down in the water, with the
result that it became discoloured with a black cloud, another of these
curious looking creatures not having discharged its ink.

"Penanink fish, we calls 'em," said Josh laughing, and turning away his
face, for he could not help enjoying the disgust shown by Arthur.

"Make capital bait, Master Richard," said Will, carefully storing the
squid away in the locker of the boat.

"Here's some cuttle for you too," shouted Pollard; and this time a
couple of cuttle-fish were passed on; but before they reached the boat,
taught by experience, Arthur carefully got behind his father, making him
a shield against the inky shower which did not come.

As soon as it was safe he emerged, though, and eagerly stood looking on
as Dick and his father examined the curious creatures, which looked like
soft bags, with so many sucker-covered arms hanging out all ready to
seize upon the first hapless fish that came their way, and drag them to
their mouths.

"What! is that its mouth?" cried Arthur. "It looks just like a parrot's
beak."

It was a good comparison, for there is great similarity between them.

The short tentacles and the two longer ones, with which the cuttle is
provided, were duly examined, and then they, murderers as they were of
all things that came to t