The Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1837-1845, 1842-04-23
SHELL FISH FOR THE LONDON MARKET.

Not long ago. after boat voyage in the south west
| where well wooded banks dip their boughs into a
broad, brimful, winding river that opens out from
point to point into the sembance of chain of lakes
as it approaches the sea, landed at village cele-
brated for its neutrality-suspicious. perforated trunks IN
which crab Holsters, and crawsh are kept alive
| for the market large smack was lying at tins
village and as the tide receded the began to
discharge her freight We went on board the craft
Her hold divided transversey; in one apart
ment were hundreds Of Holsters and crawfish
and there many crabs next door The tide
had left the wretches heaped upon each other, and
among them scramble going on, literally Tor
life. The view of the struggling mass was more than
painful the convusive motion OF the long antenna
of the sea crawfsh as they bristled up among the
crowd, and the erkngs of the Holsters tails In vain
| endeavour to swim away from their misery without
water There was basket with whip on boom,
and into these crowded black holes descended booted
fishermen. Presently of these familiars sang out
'sDead crabs !'-and up came the basket An ex-
perenced glance thrown over it by some on deck,
and the best were picked out and carried to the
boiler-thence to be hawked about the country as
fresh crabs but numbers were thrown away as past
all culinary help. After while there was cry
from below Of olive crabs (males, )and up came the
basket with its living load, and down it was lowered
over the side reversed, and the contents pitched
rnasse into the carb Here at first misery
but at last the wrestling animals became disentangled
and there almost an air OF composure about the
stronger martyrs they crawled Oft to quiet nook
there to breathe freely after the torture Thefemaes
were treated in the same way.
The more mercurial Holsters occasionally rushed
upon their fate when basket of them was hoisted
up, particularly vivacious would every now and
then spring out with sort of demivolte, and falling
on the deck, split his cuirass just about the point
where the heart is situated no was he down
and lying all abroad, than off he hurried to the
pot 1t at first puzzle to think how it happened
that they had not each other to pieces in the
melee for they were neither pegged nor tied it
turned out that the leading muscles of their claws
had been cut, ''that they might not quarrel" AS in
every deep there is generally lower STILL upon the
removal Of the crustaceans there appeared tesse-
lated pavement of oysters, and we almost fanced
that we could hear them sigh their thanksgiving when
the mass that had tramped them removed.
Not that oyster is much an object of pity under
such circumstances for he can make himself tolera-
bly, comfortable il his closed SHE'LL the suffering of
the Holsters, and crawfsh must have been terrible
for in them the system is highly developed
A very little would have spared the greater
part of this agony and saved considerable part OF
the cargo If the well of the vessel had been fitted
with iron gratings made to ship and unshp tier above
tier and proper number had been allotted to each
shelf the crabs and Holsters would have been COM
paritively at their ease, with enough of moisture
about their bronchin to enable them to breathe
fortably when left by the tide till they trans
ferred to the CARDS. 1t must have been asphyxia
consequent the budding together of such con
geries that killed so many-Quarterly Revie,c