44 THE crab's hind feet. 



to Tise in describing tliis structure and its operation, 

 may not convey to my readers the same strong im- 

 pression of fitness and perfectness of contrivance, 

 which a glance at the little Crab, when at work, 

 would give ; to myself, it appeared one of the most 

 striking examples I had ever seen of that compensa- 

 tory adaptation of an organ to a requirement, which 

 Paley has so well illustrated. Perhaps I ought to 

 add, that in order to see the structure of the bristles, 

 they must be examined when recent, or preserved in 

 fluid ; for, in drying, the hairs fall down and adhere 

 to the side, so as to be undistinguishable. 



But I have not yet done with my little eremite. I 

 the less reluctantly linger on the contrivances dis- 

 played in his economy, because he is so common, and 

 so readily procured, that any of my readers who may 

 visit a rocky shore at low water, may verify these 

 particulars for themselves. When you first take up 

 one in your fingers, (which, by the way, do with a 

 little caution, for these gentlemen nip pretty hard,) 

 one of the most obvious peculiarities is that, besides 

 these flat nippers, you can find only three pairs of 

 legs instead of fom-, the complement which Crabs in 

 general rejoice in. You may institute a minute ex- 

 amination, as I did with the first individual that I 

 met with, and yet fail to discover any more ; but 

 there is, notwithstanding, a fourth pair, — very minute 

 indeed, tiny slender pins, set a little above the general 

 level, and folded down so closely in a groove, beneath 

 the edges of the carapace, as to be almost invisible. 



What is the use of these feeble limbs ? No one 

 that I asked could tell me; till I asked the Crab 



