found in their own element. They are mostly carnivorous, though they
seize upon almost anything that comes in their way: they even devour
their own offspring, and manifest a particular predilection for all
living creatures. Those, to which Nature has meted out mouths of the
greatest capacity, would seem to pursue everything with life, and
frequently engage in fierce conflicts with their prey. The animal with
the largest mouth is usually the victor; and he has no sooner conquered
his foe than he devours him. Innumerable shoals of one species pursue
those of another, with a ferocity which draws them from the pole to the
equator, through all the varying temperatures and depths of their
boundless domain. In these pursuits a scene of universal violence is the
result; and many species must have become extinct, had not Nature
accurately proportioned the means of escape, the production, and the
numbers, to the extent and variety of the danger to which they are
exposed. Hence the smaller species are not only more numerous, but more
productive than the larger; whilst their instinct leads them in search
of food and safety near the shores, where, from the shallowness of the
waters, many of their foes are unable to follow them.