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BEACH RAMBLES. 357 
and rising by a gentle slope to the height of perhaps a hundred 
feet, where its abrupt sides are washed by the waves; a mass of 
drift with alternate layers of gravel and water-worn stones of va- 
rious sizes, gradually wasting away under the encroachments of 
wind and tide; the old fishermen telling of the time, when many 
rods farther out, they used to see : 
“ The Head of the Boar, 
Toss the foam, from his tusks of stone.” 
To the north, a long, sloping, sandy beach stretches away in a 
sweeping curve to Little Boar’s Head, three miles distant, and to 
the south a similar beach curves around for two miles to the banks 
of Hampton River, and those Rivermouth Rocks, whereof Whit- 
tier sings. On beyond, lies Salisbury Beach, and farther on, low 
down in the horizon, appears the blue outline of Cape Ann. 
At the northern end, the beach is covered with huge boulders 
as far as a granite ledge lying midway between high and low water 
mark, hollowed into caves and recesses and surrounded with little 
pools full of life and beauty. From this point a hard, smooth and 
level beach stretches away for a mile, till, approaching the rocks 
and the river, it is by cross currents rippled and furrowed, afford- 
ing a fine opportunity to study the effects of tidal and wave action. 
Back of this, rise a number of sand hills, fifteen or twenty feet 
high, raised into fantastic shapes by the wind, from which, when 
the west wind blows, the fine white sand drifts across the beach 
like snow in winter. Back of these hills, are marshes, interlaced 
by a network of small streams and ditches, attractive both to the 
sportsman and the naturalist. 
Suppose on a pleasant morning in July we rise with the sun 
and start on a voyage of discovery. The smooth, shining beach 
is half covered with the advancing or retreating tide, and with our 
eyes wide open, we walk down the sand. Our attention is soon 
attracted by a number of curious tracks, sometimes circling around 
the small pools found in the hollows surrounding every large rock ; 
sometimes leading for many rods in a straight line towards the 
water. Let us follow one to its termination. í 
If in the sand, digging a few inches turns out a little crab 
(Cancer Sayi?) who if set at liberty, either writes his curious 
hieroglyphics as he retreats along the sand, or more probably 
. commences at once to bury himself again with marvellous rapidity. 
The size of the animal will be found to vary the appearance of his 
