A NATURALIST. 85 



the rocks to bask in the sun, participate in about an equal 

 degree in the qualities of vigilance and swiftness. Many 

 a breathless race have I run in vain, attempting to inter- 

 cept them, and prevent their escaping into the sea. Many 

 an hour of cautious and solicitous endeavour to steal upon 

 them unobserved, has been frustrated by their long sight- 

 ed watchfulness ; and several times, when, by extreme 

 care and cunning approaches, I have actually succeeded 

 in getting between a fine specimen and the sea, and had 

 full hope of driving him farther inland, have all my an- 

 ticipations been ruined by the wonderful swiftness of 

 their flight, or the surprising facility with which they 

 would dart off in the very opposite direction, at the very 

 moment I felt almost sure of my prize. One day, in par- 

 ticular, I saw on a flat rock, which afforded a fine sunning 

 place, the most beautiful crab I had ever beheld. It was 

 of the largest size, and would have covered a large din- 

 ner plate, most beautifully coloured with bright crimson 

 below, and a variety of tints of blue, purple, and green 

 above; it was just such a specimen as could not fail to 

 excite all the solicitude of a collector to obtain. But, it 

 was not in the least deficient in the art of self-preserva- 

 tion ; my most careful manoeuvres proved ineffectual, and 

 all my efforts only enabled me to see enough of it to 

 augment my regrets to a high degree. Subsequently I 

 saw a similar individual in the collection of a resident ; 

 this had been killed against the rocks during a violent 

 hurricane, with very slight injury to its shell. I offered 

 8 



