38 HISTORY OF BRITISH CRUSTACEA. 



left my pocket-knife at the mouth of the crab-hole. I felt 

 loath to part with my old knife, and therefore at once put on 

 my hat, running hard, for fear the tide, which had already 

 turned, might be too high. I got to the place however just 

 in time, found my knife, and then took another peep at the 

 crab : it had. not moved, and thinking that if I could not 

 eat it myself I might ask my neighbour's acceptance of it, 

 I drew it out with my fingers, as I had done with the former. 

 But lo ! it was a soft Crab, the shell being of the consis- 

 tency of wet parchment, and the colours (all except those of 

 the carapace) being pale. It was a female too, without any 

 sign of spawn, and had lost one claw ; strange, that 1 had 

 not thought of connecting the soft claw that I had drawn 

 out before with this crab that I saw at the bottom ; but I 

 carefully put the helpless creature into the hole again, and 

 saw that it settled its legs and body comfortably in its old 

 quarters, and there I left it ; for our crab is worthless for 

 the table in this condition, unlike the Land Crabs of the 

 West Indies, which are esteemed peculiarly delicate in their 

 soft state. What then are we to infer from this association ? 

 Do the common Crabs live in pairs ? and does one keep 

 guard at the mouth of their cavern while its consort is un- 

 dergoing its change of skin ? If this is the case, it is a 



