KIDD'S LONDON JOURNAL. 



263 



that a first glance was calculated to convey 

 would be, that Dr. Gall was a man of originality 

 and depth of mind, possessing much urbanity, 

 with some self-esteem and inflexibility of 

 design. 



" After presenting my letters of introduction 

 to him at seven o'clock, a. m., he showed me 

 into a room, the walls of which were covered 

 with bird-cages, and the floor with dogs, cats, 

 &c. Observing that I was surprised at the 

 number of his companions, he observed, ' All 

 you Englishmen take me for a bird-catcher; I 

 am sure you feel surprised that I am not some- 

 what differently made to any of you, and that I 

 should employ my time in talking to birds. 

 Birds, Sir, differ in their dispositions like men; 

 aud if they were but of more consequence, the 

 peculiarity of their characters would have been 

 as well delineated. Do you think,' said he, 

 turning his eyes to two beautiful dogs at his feet, 

 that were endeavoring to gain his attention, 

 ' Do you think that these little pets possess pride 

 and vanity like man?' ' Yes,' said I, ' I have 

 remarked their vanity frequently.' ' We will 

 call both feelings into action,' said he. He then 

 caressed the whelp, and took it into his arms ; 

 ' Mark, his mother's offended pride,' said he, as 

 she was walking quietly across the chamber to 

 her mat: ' do you think she will come if I call 

 her ?' ' Oh yes,' I answered. ' No, not at 

 all.' He made the attempt; but she heeded 

 not the hand she had so earnestly endea- 

 vored to lick but an instant before. ' She will 

 not speak to me to-day,' said the doctor. He 

 then described to me the peculiarity of many of 

 his birds; and I was astonished to find, that he 

 seemed familiar also with their dispositions (if I 

 may be allowed the word). ' Do you think a 

 man's time would be wasted thus in England ? 

 You are a wealthy and a powerful nation, and as 

 long as the equilibrium exists between the two, 

 so shall you remain; but this never has, nor 

 cannot exist beyond a certain period. Such is 

 your industry, stimulated by the love of gain, 

 that your whole life is spun out before you are 

 aware the wheel is turning; and so highly do you 

 value commerce, that it stands in the place of self- 

 knowledge, and an acquaintance with nature and 

 her immense laboratory' 



" I was delighted with this conversation : he 

 seemed to me to take a wider view in the con- 

 templation of man than any other person with 

 whom I had ever conversed. During breakfast, 

 he frequently fed the little suitors, who ap- 

 proached as near as their iron bars would admit. 

 ' You see they all know me,' said he, ' and will 

 feed from my hand, except this blackbird, who 

 must gain his morsel by stealth before he eats it; 

 we will retire an instant, and in our absence he 

 will take the bread.' On our return, we found he 

 had secreted it in a corner of his cage. I men- 

 tion these, otherwise uninteresting anecdotes, to 

 show how much Dr. Gall had studied the pecu- 

 liarities of the smaller animals. After our break- 

 fast, he showed me his extensive collection ; and 

 thus ended my first visit to the greatest moral 

 philosopher that Europe has produced ; to a man, 

 than whom few were ever more ridiculed, and 

 few ever pursued their bent more determinately, 

 despite its effects; to a man, who alone effected 



more change in mental philosophy than perhaps 

 any predecessor; to a man, who suffered more 

 persecution, and yet possessed more philanthropy 

 than most philosophers." 



(To be Continued,*) 



SHELL-FISH. 

 Notes on the Crab, 



In the "Naturalist" for April, are some 

 curious remarks on the Crab, of which it 

 appears there yet remains much to be 

 known. We quite agree with Mr. John 

 Dixon, the writer of the article we allude to, 

 in hoping that our friends on the coast will 

 tell us all they know of the habits of this 

 singular animal ; and it is with this view, we 

 give extensive publicity to Mr. Dixon's 

 Contribution : — 



That the Crab does change its shell, admits of 

 little doubt. We have the testimony of many 

 eminent naturalists who have witnessed this 

 singularity, together with the fact that specimens, 

 devoid of shelly covering, have occasionally 

 found their way into the fishrenian's creels or 

 pots. They are seldom brought to market in 

 this state, but are cast overboard, being con- 

 sidered watery and insipid. In some parts of 

 America, soft crabs are esteemed a delicacy. 

 If we examine minutely the anatomical structure 

 of this shelly covering, it will convince us that a 

 frequent change is necessary for the full develop- 

 ment of the body. This takes place several times 

 in the course of a year, in young specimens, the 

 growth at this period proceeding rapidly. On 

 approaching maturity, it only takes place at long 

 intervals, affording ample time for the full de- 

 velopment of any testaceous body which may 

 be attached. Mr. Ferguson's Crab must have 

 been an adult specimen ; the spat, or spawn of 

 the oyster would in the course of twelve months 

 become as large as a crown-piece; after which 

 the dimensions increase more slowly, while the 

 shelly matter is increasing in thickness. Mr. 

 Couch, in one of his interesting communications 

 to the " Magazine of Natural History," states he 

 has found Oysters on the Crab two inches and a 

 half in diameter. Several fine specimens with 

 this singularity, are deposited in the British 

 Museum. It is said the Crab is much attached 

 to its native haunts. Many have been marked 

 and deposited at considerable distances, and after 

 some time had elapsed, were again captured in 

 their old quarters. They occasionally attain a 

 large size, as we may see from the many ex- 

 amples deposited in local museums. The largest 

 I ever saw is at Walton Hall, the seat of Charles 

 Waterton, Esq., the indefatigable and unrivalled 

 taxidermist; dissected into sixty-six pieces, pre- 

 vious to mounting. Much has been written on 

 the natural history of the Crab, but we are still 

 in the dark on many interesting points. It is to 

 be hoped our friends on the coast will fall into 

 the views of " The Naturalist," and communi- 

 cate such information as may occasionally reward 

 their researches. Natural History appears to 

 have received a new impulse ; the numerous ad- 



