92 The Pond-Meadow. 



the main arm of the sea, but returns with the incoming 

 tide. 



On the bridges, where the creek and its arm cross the 

 road, the catchers of crabs often station themselves, and 

 tying pieces of meat, or fish heads, to strings, bait the wily 

 crustaceans. An entertaining party of three negroes occu- 

 pied the bridge one August afternoon, and laughingly told 

 how the crabs came to eat of a dead dog that lay in the 

 water just up the kill; and which kind chance, aided by a 

 string, a brick and a man, had brought that way. One 

 with a fishing line baited with a small piece of meat, had 

 captured all of the crabs, because his line was longest, and 

 he threw it nearer to the dog. He now and then slyly 

 inquired of his companions, how many they had caught 

 with their large pieces of meat. Then there was an 

 uproarious darky laugh, loud enough to frighten all of the 

 epicurean crabs from their chosen feast, and cause them to 

 run sidewise for half a mile. 



The same afternoon, a little boy in a blue cotton shirt, 

 was crab fishing near the mill. He said that they knew 

 better than to take hold of his bait, which no doubt 

 accounted for the fact that he had secured but a single 

 individual that was retained in the net with which he hoped 

 to make further conquests. He ran about most comically 

 from place to place, holding his meat fast by the string, in 

 one hand, his net with the kicking crab in the other, and 

 all the while whistling, or mumbling about the crabs being 

 afraid of his bait. At last he shouted that he had seen a 

 " devil crab," and immediately began to divest himself of 

 his shoes and stockings. While he was thus employed, I 



