42 THE INLAND SEA REVISITED. 



bright-painted lady-butterfly fluttering about the bare 

 rock in a sunny, sheltered spot. A small yellow species 

 of butterfly I have often seen throughout the winter 

 months on bright days. It was late in the afternoon 

 when I reached the ship, and what was my delight to 

 find a crab, the long-looked-for crab, actually tied to 

 a rope's end and sprawling in the water! "What a 

 colour the animal was ! No paint could produce the 

 crimson that in great splatches spread over a bright 

 yellow ground. This one measured eleven feet six 

 inches from tip to tip, and I am quite sure it was by 

 no means one of the largest. I soon set to work and 

 disjointed my crustacean, and, washing each joint out 

 with carbolic acid diluted with water, afterwards had 

 the satisfaction of sending the big fellow to my old 

 friend Mr. John Hancock, who most kindly mounted it 

 and presented it to the Museum at Newcastle-on-Tyne, 

 where it now is. Some fishermen, thirty miles from 

 the ship, had caught the creature and brought it to me. 

 Tt took two men to carry it overland. 



In the Inland Sea the octopus is very common. It 

 is brought to the surface when clinging to bait or the 

 fishermen's lines. It is greatly relished by the natives, 

 being considered both agreeable and nutritious. I can 

 imagine it possessing the latter quality, being such a 



