CEAY-FISH. 277 



place, where they can see the art of shrimping carried on in 

 all its picturesque beauty. 



The fresh-water cray-fish, a very delicate kind of miniature 

 lobster, abundantly numerous in all our larger streams, and 

 exceedingly plentiful in France, may often be seen on the 

 counters of our fishmongers ; as also the sea cray-fish, which is 

 much larger in size, having been known to attain the weight 

 of ten or twelve pounds, but it is coarser in the flavour than 

 either the crab or lobster. The river cray-fish, which lodges 

 in holes in the banks of our streams, is caught simply by 

 means of a split stick with a bit of bait inserted at the end. 

 The fresh-water cray-fish has afibrded a better opportunity for 

 studying the structure of the Crustacea than any of the salt- 

 water species, as its habits can be more easily observed. 

 The sea cray-fish is not at all plentiful in the British Islands, 

 although we have a limited supply in some of our markets. 



There has hitherto beeen a fixed period for the annual 

 sacrifice to crustacean gastronomy. As my readers are already 

 aware, there is a well-known time for the supplying of oysters, 

 which is fixed by law, and which begins in August and ends 

 in April. During the r-less months oysters are less wholesome 

 than in the colder weather. The season for lobsters begins about 

 March, and is supposed to close with September, so that in 

 the round of the year we have always some kind of shell-iish 

 delicacy to feast upon. Were a little more attention devoted 

 to the economy of our fisheries, we might have lobsters and 

 crabs upon our tables all the year round. In my opinion 

 lobsters are as good for food in the winter time as during the 

 months in which they are most in demand. It may be hoped 

 that we shall get to understand aU this much better by and 

 by, for at present we are sadly ignorant of the natural economy 

 of these, and indeed all other denizens of the deep. 



^ Considering the importance attached by fishermen to the 

 easy attainment of a cheap supply of bait, it is surprising that 

 no attempt has been made in this country to economise and 

 regulate the various mussel-beds which abound on the Scottish 

 and English coasts. The mussel is very largely used for bait, 

 and fishermen have to go far, and pay dear, for what they require 

 — their wives and families being also employed to gather as 

 many as they can possibly procure on the accessible places of the 

 coast, but usually .the bait has to be purchased and carried from 

 long distances. I propose to show our fisher-people how these 



