Necessity, However, Is The Mother Of Invention; So I Manufactured A Knitting Needle Of Wood, Unravelled Some Thick String, And In A Few Hours Possessed A Net.

Very soon afterwards a mollusca had been captured, and placed in a tub filled with sea water.

The little creature's body is about six inches long and two inches high; the crest extends over the whole of the back, and in the middle, where it is highest, measures about an inch and a half. Both the crest and body are transparent, and appear as if tinged with rose colour; from the belly, which is violet, are suspended a number of threads or arms of the same colour.

I hung the little thing up to dry at the stern, outside the ship; some of the threads reached down into the water (a depth of at least twelve feet), but most of them fell off. After the animal was dead, the crest remained erect, and the body perfectly filled out, but the beautiful rose colour gradually changed to white.

18th August. Today we had a heavy thunder-storm, for which we were very grateful, as it cooled the air considerably. Between 1 and 2 degrees, or 3 degrees North latitude, frequent changes in the weather are very common. For instance, on the morning of the 20th we were overtaken by a strong wind, which lashed up the sea to a great height, and continued until evening, when it gave way to a tropical shower, which we at home should call a perfect water-spout. The deck was instantaneously transformed into a lake, while at the same time the wind had so completely fallen that even the rudder enjoyed a holiday.

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