CRUSTACEOUS FISHES. 



Continue to move forward in their slow uni- 

 form manner. When the sun shines and is 

 hot upon the surface of the ground, they then 

 make an universal halt, and wait till the cool 

 of the evening. When they are terrified, they 

 march back in a confused disorderly manner, 

 holding up their nippers, with which they 

 sometimes tear off' a piece of the skin, and 

 then leave the weapon where they indicted 

 the wound. They even try to intimidate their 

 enemies; for they often clatter their nippers 

 together, as if it were to threaten those that 

 come to disturb them. But though they thus 

 strive to be formidable to man, they are much 

 more so to each other; for they are possess- 

 ed of one most unsocial property, which is, 

 that if any of them by accident is maimed in 

 such a manner as to be incapable of proceed- 

 ing, the rest fall upon and devour it on the 

 spot, and then pursue their journey. 



When after a fatiguing march and escaping 

 a thousand dangers (for they are sometimes 

 three months in getting to the shore) they 

 have arrived at their destined port, they pre- 

 pare to cast their spawn. The peas are as 

 yet within their bodies, and not excluded, as 

 is usual in animals of this kind, under the tail ; 

 for the creature waits for the benefit of the 

 sea-water to help the delivery. For this pur- 

 pose, the crab has no sooner reached the 

 shore, than it eagerly goes to the edge of the 

 "water, and lets the waves wash over its body 

 two or three times. This seems only a pre- 

 paration for bringing the hpawn to maturity ; 

 for without farther delay they withdraw to 

 seek a lodging upon laiid: in the meantime, 

 the spawn grows larger, is excluded out of 

 the body, and sticks to the barbs under the 

 i'ap, or more properly the tail. This bunch 

 is seen as big as a hen's egg, and exactly re- 

 sembling the roes of herrings. In this state 

 of pregnancy, they once more seek the shore 

 for the last time, and shaking off their spawn 

 intojhe water, leave accident to bring it to 

 maturity. At this time whole shoals of hun- 

 gry fish are at the shore in expectation of this 

 annual supply; the sea to a great distance 

 seems black with them; and about two-thirds 

 of the crabs-eggs are immediately devoured 

 by these rapacious invaders. The eggs that 

 escape are hatched under the sand ; and soon 

 after millions at a time of these little crabs 



are seen quitting the shore, and slowly tra- 

 velling up to the mountains. 



The old ones, however, are not so active 

 to return; they hare become so feeble and 

 lean, that they can hardly creep along, and 

 the flesh at that time changes its colour. The 

 most of them, therefore, are obliged to con- 

 tinue in the flat parts of the country till they 

 recover, making holes in the earth, which 

 they cover at the mouth with leaves and dirt. 

 so that no air may enter. There they throw 

 off* their old shells, which they leave as it 

 were quite whole, the place where they open- 

 ed on the belly being unseen. At that time 

 they.are quite naked, and almost without mo- 

 tion for six days together, when they become 

 so fat as to be delicious food. They have 

 then under their stomachs four large white 

 stones, which gradually decrease in propor- 

 tion as the shell hardens, and when they come 

 to perfection are not to be found. It is at 

 that time that the animal is seen slowly making 

 its way back; and all this is most commonly 

 performed 'in the space of six weeks. 



This animal when possessed of its retreats 

 in the mountains is impregnable ; for only sub- 

 sisting upon vegetables, it seldom ventures 

 out; and its habitation being in the most in- 

 accessible places, it remains for a great part 

 of the season in perfect security. It is only 

 when impelled by the desire of bringing forth 

 its young, and when compelled to descend into 

 the flat country, that it is taken. At that 

 time the natives wait for its descent in eager 

 expectation, and destroy thousands; but dis- 

 regarding the bodies, they only seek for that 

 small spawn which lies on each side of the 

 stomach within the shell ; of about the thick- 

 ness of a man's thumb. They are much more 

 valuable upon their return after they have 

 cast their shell ; for being covered with a skin 

 resembling soft parchment, almost every part 

 except the stomach, may be eaten. They 

 are taken in their holes by feeling for them 

 in the ground with an instrument: they are 

 sought, after by night, when on their journey, 

 willi flambeaux. The instant the animal per- 

 ceives itself attacked, it throws itself on its 

 back, and with its claws pinches most terri- 

 bly whatever it happens to fasten on. But 

 the dexterous crab-catcher takes them by the 

 hinder legs in such a manner, that its nippers 

 5 B 



