The Octopus in the Aquarituu at Brighton has curiously vin-
dicated that representation of its powers by Victor Hugo which was so often denounced as exaggerated. Mr. Charles Collette, an actor in the theatre at Brighton, who had learnt the art of snake-charming in India, undertook to charm the Octopus, and succeeded so far as to bring him to the surface of the water, and make the Octopus follow him round the tank. But when he bent down to the surface of the water, the Octopus was alto- gether too much charmed to resist a positive embrace, and catch- ing Mr. Collette in his arms, he drew him into the tank, where a struggle ensued, and Mr. Collette was with difficulty extracted by Mr. Smith and other bystanders. The moral is, that the charm which makes one sort of creature bend to your will, may make another sort of creature bend you to its will; and this may not be so pleasant, especially if it has eight arms.
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