64 
A COENISH FAUNA. 
but little and commonly hides herself, few of them are taken in 
the pots. Fishermen mention .such instances as somewhat re- 
markable, though most other crustaceans are familiarly taken 
with the “ pea ” attached. 
The eggs are commonly shed while the parent is hid in the 
sand ; and the young, of very small size, may be found beneath 
stones at low water mark ; but there are some differences in this, 
as in some other of the habits of the different sexes ; for among 
the multitudes of young found as described I have never been 
able to discover a female. 
The trap made use of in taking crabs and lobsters is made 
of wicker work, in the form of the ordinary dome-shaped mouse 
trap, with the difference that the only entrance is at the top, and 
that the bottom is immovably joined to the structure. It is 
about two feet and a half high, and the bait is fastened within, 
between the neck of the entrance and the sides, by wooden 
skewers, so as to be seen at the greatest distance. 
The skate and other fishes not generally sold in the market 
are used for bait, and it is found that the freshest only wiU 
attract the crab, whilst for lobster it is best when hung for 
several days to become tainted. 
The pot is weighed down by a couple of stones fastened within, 
and the place is marked by a line with single corks along its 
course and a buoy at the end. The pots are hauled or examined 
every morning, at which time they are rebaited, and the crabs 
and lobsters conveyed to the store pots, which are much larger 
than the others, and are suspended near the surface by a small 
barrel fastened above, the more effectually to secure them from 
the voracity of ravenous fishes that prowl below. In this man- 
ner the fish are preserved until the arrival of the Well-Boat or 
Lobster Smack which comes periodically to convey them to the 
market. 
When first taken it is usual to drive a wooden peg into the 
joints of the prehensile claws to prevent their injuring each other, 
and no food is afforded as they will endure long abstinence with- 
out sufltering although they can live but a very short time 
without a renewal of water. In the small collection of a feW 
dozens kept together in the store pots, this source of injury is 
indeed of small importance ; but in the well of the lobster smack 
