THE ROSY FEATHER-STAR. 89 
the star-fish is so quick in finding food, or enrages the 
fishermen by discovering the bait which they put for 
other animals, for it turns out that this heavy, stupid- 
looking animal is much more wide-awake than he 
appears. In many cases a soft lid or feeler hangs 
over the eye-spot, giving to it a curiously intelligent 
look, and Professor Forbes relates how once when a 
beautifully delicate star-fish called the Lingthorn fell 
to pieces as he tried to lift it out of the water, this lid 
at the end of one of the arms "opened and closed with 
something exceedingly like a wink of derision." 
Our first walking animal then is by no means a poor 
or feeble creature ; he has chain-armour woven into his 
leathery skin, with sharp spikes and snapping claws to 
protect him, a good digestion and a capacious mouth 
to feed his greedy stomach, a good array of nerves, 
quick feeling and eyesight, together with a wonderful 
apparatus for moving over the ground ; and when we 
add to this that if he loses any of his rays he can 
close over the wound and grow a new limb, we see 
that his powers of living satisfactorily are very great. 
We must not suppose, however, that the curious 
walking apparatus of the star-fish is perfect in all his 
relations, or that they all walk by means of suckers, 
any more than all sponge-animals can build a toilet 
sponge, or all slime -animals make fine chambered 
shells. The rosy feather-star for example (Fig. 38), as 
it sits clasping the rock or a bunch of sea-weed, with 
the fine strong tendrils which grow out of its back, 
vaving its arms like a group of brilliant red plumes 
spotted with bright yellow, has no need to use any 
feet-tubes, though it is a star-fish, and those which 
it has, probably serve merely as a help in breathing. 
