Page:Narrative of a survey of the intertropical and western coasts of Australia, Volume 2.djvu/71

 52, SURVEY OF THE INTERTROPICAr, lSSl effect of magic: upon our re 'ttring and attentively Jdy"-., watching.the spot, these ctiriouslanimals would. re-appear ,as suddenly 'as they had' before va- .: hisheal.' We fired at several,'but so sudden were their motions, that they generally escaped; twr or three only were procured, Which 'appeared from their lying on the .mud in an inactive State to' hae been asleep; they are furnished with ver strong pectoral and ventral Rnf% with Which and With the anal fin, when required, they make a hole, into which they drop. When spoting on the mud, the pectoral fins are .used like legs, upon which they move very quickly; but nothing can exceed the instantaneous movement by which they disappear. Those that were shot were taken on board, but on account of the extreme heat of the weather, they had become so putri fled as to be totally unfit for preservation. za The next day, the'30th, wa spent in exa- mining some bights in the narrow part of. the channel near .Gap Island, so named from .a re, murkable division in its centre, through .which thE: .high-tide flows, and gives it the appearance of being two islands. It was on this occasion that we explored Half-way Bay, where we were fortunate in finding good anchorage, and ih which we also discovered a strait, that on a subsequent

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