MARINE TURTLES AND TERRAPINS 289 



part of tide streams, while the men rout the terrapin 

 out farther up-stream and drive them toward the 

 net, in which they become entangled. A common 

 method of fishing, and a particularly destructive 

 one, is followed at low tide by men who wade in the 

 mud and feel with their feet and with sticks for 

 partly buried animals. Formerly, when terrapins 

 were more plentiful, large catches were often made in 

 this way in the autumn, when the animals had be- 

 come sluggish from the cold ; and this, probably more 

 than anything else, caused the rapid decline in the 

 abundance of terrapins. 



Diamond-back terrapins, like turtles, are shipped 

 to market alive, and, as the animals will stand much 

 abuse, they are generally packed for shipment in 

 barrels, bags, or deep boxes like so many potatoes. 

 The principal markets for diamond-back terrapins 

 are the big Eastern cities, where most of the animals 

 are used in high-class hotels and restaurants. 



