INTRODUCTION. 
XI 
dress in the right place ; that you could not walk where you are now walking but for it; and tliat 
to walk where you are walking, makes you feel free, bold, joyous, monarch of all you survey, 
untrammelled, at ease, at home ! At home, though among all manner of strange, unknown 
creatures, flung at your feet every minute by the quick succeeding waves. Curiously fragile, 
paper-like, sea-urchins — you wonder if alive or dead — some mere empty cases, some heavy 
with the corpse within ; jelly- and star- fishes ; ridiculous little crabs, who find their legs at 
once, and trot hurriedly off ; and mixed with these, perhaps, the heavy body of a once-beautiful 
seagull, its life cut short by an idle shot ; and a thousand other things which must not be named 
or numbered here ; for, if you are a sea-weed collector only, you will not care to be troubled about 
sponges, zoophytes, or shells, nay, probably would not even notice them, for it is curious how 
the eye accustoms itself to see what it is searching after, and to ignore everything else. Any 
mother knows this who has walked down a wooded lane in spring with a schoolboy son. To 
her it is full of primroses, violets, and such matters ; to him of the birds’ nests which, even 
when pointed out, she can scarcely distinguish in the thick green hedge. “ None so blind as 
those who won’t see,” except, perhaps, those who are looking for something else. 
But probably, as you proceed in your walk, you will observe that more and more sea-weeds 
are being left among the creatures on the sand, and, if so, by all means examine the nature of 
the wash-up before you pass on. If you see chiefly large lumps of the olive-coloured Fuci^ such 
as are figured in the first four Plates, you need not trouble yourself. Pursue your way. But 
if delicate little tufts, pink or brown, are lying about, secure a few of each sort as nearly as you 
can guess at them, before you proceed. The initiated will, of course, have a definite idea of 
what to gather in such a case, and so will you — and soon become one of them — if you will 
now on this first occasion keep your random gatherings by themselves, so that on your return 
you may notice what it was you picked up. It is possible that all your little tufts may be but 
one species — that very common Ceramium ruh-^m (Fig. 242), which is a sort of Paul Pry in 
sea-weed society, intruding himself everywhere in many varieties of appearance. Or they may 
be altogether a mass of another common thing, Plocamium coccineum (Fig. 178), for as it looks 
very pink as it lies, you would be certain to pick it up, were it there. And sea-weeds are so 
often torn from the rocks in shoals, that it is very common to find a quantity of specimens of 
one thing together ; and as only an experienced eye can detect a species as it lies in a lump on 
the sand, beginners are sure to pick up more of a kind than they want. No matter, however, 
for your first gatherings, if you do but observe them narrowly afterwards, and so take in a 
lesson of increased wisdom for next day. 
Moreover, “ time and chance happeneth to all men,” and your very first day’s hunt may, by a 
happy accident, — waft actual treasures under your eyes. It is in vain to attempt to enumerate 
these, but let no very delicate hair-like tuft or flat pink plant escape you ; watch the wave that 
is throwing them ashore, and if it is for changing its mind and drawing them back, you must 
step in to the rescue and secure what looks to you the best, whether you wet your gloves,, 
boots, or even petticoat, or not ! And then push on, for if good things are astir in this 
manner you will get at them still more easily a little further down kneeling on some low 
rock for instance, in some sheltered corner which you must look for, where the water is 
tolerably quiet, and you can see your pretty prey floating, displayed to the best advantage, and 
dip in a bare arm to catch it at comfortable leisure. 
And here men have certainly an advantage over women, for they can wade with impunity : 
