WITH FISH-LINES AND NETS. 93 



and nearly half of his body get parboiled before 

 he thinks of letting go. Instead of this, begin 

 by plunging the crab instantly under, and the 

 claws open at once. The notion that it is more 

 humane, as some people contend, to half pul- 

 verize the crab with an axe before boiling him, 

 is the sheerest nonsense, as any one can find 

 out by experiment. 



The last year has been an excellent one for 

 crabbing a better catch has not been known 

 since 1876. Earlier in the season, before the 

 first crabs had made their appearance, an old 

 " Cap'n " and fisherman of this neighborhood, 

 who is an expert in all matters pertaining to 

 fish, tides, weather, and profane language, told 

 me that there would be no crabs this year. He 

 is a dear old man, close upon eighty years of 

 age, who is so full of gentle humor and kindly 

 shrewdness that he can rip out oath after oath 

 without offending any one. " He swears so 

 gently," said a lady of my acquaintance, " that 

 it does n't seem like real swearing." 



" That 'ere blizzard," said the old fellow 



to me one evening in June, as we sat on some 

 eel-pots discussing the next day's weather, 

 " killed every crab in the bay, sure. The 



