THE KRAKEN. 
15 
Placed in the centre, instead of in the front of it, and it 
is divided into segments, which radiate from this central 
head. These segments are very flexible, and capable of 
movement in every direction, and are thus developed 
into arms, prehensile limbs, by which their owner can 
seize and hold its living prey. That this may be more 
perfectly accomplished, these arms are studded along 
their inner Surface with rows of sucking discs, in each of 
which, by means of a retractile piston, a vacuum can 
be produced. The consequent pressure of the outer at- 
mosphere or water, causes them to adhere firmly to any 
substance to which they are applied, whether stone, fish, 
crustacean, or flesh of man. 
But, although in all these highly-organised head-footed 
mollusks the same general build prevails, it is admirably 
modified in each of them to suit certain habits and neces- 
sities. Thus the octopus, being a shore dweller, its soft 
and pliant, but very tough body, having merely a very 
small and rudimentary indication of an internal shell (just 
a little " style ") is exactly adapted for wedging itself 
amongst crevices of rocks. A large, rigid, cellular float, or 
" sepiostaire," such as Sepia possesses, or a long, horny pen 
such as Loligo has, would be in the way, and worse than 
useless in such places as the octopus inhabits. Its eight 
long powerful arms or feet are precisely fitted for clamber- 
ing over rocks and stones, and as its food of course consists 
principally of the living things most abundant in such 
localities, namely, the shore-crabs, its great flexible suckers, 
devoid of hooks or horny armature, are exactly adapted to 
firm and air-tight attachment to the smooth shells of the 
Crustacea, 
Unlike the octopus, which is capable only of short flights 
through the water, the " cuttles " and " squids," such as 
