n8 WILD LIFE OF SCOTLAND 



To some scalps, which I recently visited, speedy 

 destruction was threatened by the starfish, than 

 which there are no greater pests in the sea. On 

 each rakeful there were twenty, or thirty overfed 

 fellows ; and, as an evidence of their activity, nine 

 out of ten of the shells were empty. Many of the 

 raiders were at work. The stomach was exserted, 

 so as to wrap the mussel round, and force it to open ; 

 when its contents were sucked out, and the shell 

 dropped. The industry in this particular estuary 

 is in danger of being palsied, and a remedy is being 

 vainly sought for. 



All this culture is meant for the behoof of those 

 who do business in the great waters, and whose 

 wives may be seen seated outside their doors, 

 opening the bivalves with a skill which leaves no 

 trace of mantle behind, and fixing the soft body 

 with a few swift turns of the hook. The scene, in 

 the windy street of the fishing village, is picturesque 

 and savoury from a distance. 



As a good all-round bait, the mussel comes next 

 to the "lob." It is the special bait for haddock, 

 just as the lob is for plaice, with most of the North 

 Sea fishermen. 



The exception is the Firth of Forth. This, the 

 biggest estuary by far on the east coast, and the 



