26 



THE SEA S30BE 



when the tide is out, desire to know something of the creatures 

 that live entirely heyond low-water mark, where the water is 

 generally too deep for work with a hand net. To such we recom- 

 mend a small dredge that may be lowered from a boat and then 

 drawn along the bottom. A good form of dredge is shown in 

 fig. 19, and a little skill and ingenuity will enable anyone to con- 

 struct one with the help of our illustration; but, seeing that the 

 best work is to be done on rough bottoms, it is absolutely necessary 

 that both frame and net should be made of the stoutest materials 

 that can be conveniently employed. 



FIG. 20. THE CRAB-POT 



Those who have ever accompanied a fisherman while taking a 

 pull round to examine the contents of his crab or lobster pots will 

 probably have noticed what strange creatures, in addition to the 

 edible crabs and lobsters, sometimes find their way into the trap. 

 These creatures are often of great interest to a young naturalist, and 

 it will repay him to take an occasional trip with a fisherman in 

 order to obtain them ; or, still better, to have a crab-pot of his own. 

 The writer has obtained many good specimens by means of an 

 inexpensive trap, on the same principle as the ordinary crab-pot, 

 made from an old metal bird-cage of rather small size. The bottom 

 was removed, and a very shallow bag of thick canvas fixed in its 

 place ; and some of the wires were cut, and bent inwards so as to 



