Passing to the coral fishing, it may be said to be quite special, presenting no analogy with any other fishing in the European seas, if we except the sponge fisheries. The fishing stations which occur are found on the Italian coast and the coast of Barbary; in short, in most parts of the Mediterranean basin. In all these regions, on abrupt rocky beds, certain aquatic forests occur, composed entirely of the red coral, the most brilliant and the most celebrated of all the corals, _Coralium decus liquidi_! During many ages, as we have seen, the coral was supposed to be a plant. The ancient Greeks called it the _daughter of the sea_ (Κορύλλιου κόρη ἁλός), which the Latins translated into _corralium_ or _coralium_. It is now agreed among naturalists that the coral is constructed by a family of polyps living together, and composing a polypidom. It abounds in the Mediterranean and the Red Sea, where it is found at various depths, but rarely less than five fathoms, or more than a hundred and fifty. Each polypidom resembles a pretty red leafless under shrub bearing delicate little star-like radiating white flowers. The axes of this little tree are the parts common to the association, the flowrets are the polypi. These axes present a soft reticulated crust, full of little cavities, which are the cells of the polyps, and are permeated by a milky juice. Beneath the crust is the coral, properly so called, which equals marble in hardness, and is remarkable for its striped surface, its bright red colour, and the fine polish of which it is susceptible. The ancients believed that it was soft in the water, and only took its consistence when exposed to the air:-- "Sic et coralium, quo primum contigit auras Tempore, durescit." OVID. The fishing is chiefly conducted by sailors from Genoa, Leghorn, and Naples, and it is so fatiguing, that it is a common saying in Italy that a sailor obliged to go to the coral fishery should be a thief or an assassin. The saying is a gratuitous insult to the sailor, but conveys a good idea enough of the occupation. The barks sent to the fishing range from six to fifteen tons; they are solid, and well adapted for the labour; their rig is a great lateen sail, and a jib or staysail. The stern is reserved for the capstan, the fishers, and the crew. The fore part of the vessel is reserved for the requirements of the patron or master. The lines, wood, and irons employed in the coral fisheries are called the _engine_: it consists of a cross of wood formed of two bars, strongly lashed or bolted together at their centre; below this a great stone is attached, which bears the lines, arranged in the form of a sac. These lines have great meshes, loosely knotted together, resembling the well-known swab.