Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1874-03-25

him,-he's just the shape of the bottom O.
a horses foot, with a long sharp tail strik
ing out at the heel. He's funny sight
when he is digging-and digging is his
special delight, l can tell you. His shell
is in two pieces; the front piece bends
down and shovels up the dirt, the back
piece bends down the other way, and the
hard sharp tail braces against the ground
while all his feet-eight or ten there are
throw out the dirt on both sides. 1t doesn't
take long for him to burrow into the mud
out of sight.
But haven't told you about those useful
legs, which do the work of jaws. besides
the regular business of carrying their
owner about.
There are five pair of them, besides
short pair in front, called feelers. OF anten-
nae, if YOU want the book name The first
four pair are furnished with sharp teeth
lots of them, sometimes as many as hun
bred and fifty.
When this couical gentleman wants to
eat, he seizes soft worm, or some other
sea delicacy, with his two hind feet, and
holds it up to his mouth, which is con-
veniently placed among all these useful
| legs. Then the hundred and fifty sharp
little teeth go to work, and rasp the food
into bits, and the mouth takes it in
/ How do you suppose all this was found
out? A naturalist, who was curious to see
what the horse-foot did with the food that
he always pulled under his shell. waited
! till he was hard at work at his dinner, and
| then very coolly turned him over on his
back. Mr.. Limulus was too busy to mind,
so he went on eating, and the naturalist
saw the whole performance.
/ But | haven't told YOU half the wonder
full things about him. When he is first
Matched he is Il quarter of an inch in
diameter. has no tail, and has shell Just
the right size for him, of course. When
he gets bigger he outgrows the shell, as
yon youngsters do your clothes, and he
has to get out of the old suit It's Il very
iroll sight to see him come out of himself
in that way. lie don't have so much
crabs do-he Just splits open the front
edge of his shell, ana pulls himself,out
But YOU know he has been growing some
time since that baby suit fitted him, and
the fact is, he has been very much crowded
these last few days. SO when he gets fair
ly out of the shell, he swells out IN inch or
two bigger than he WAS before, and in Il
short time he has another shell big enough
for him. besides little sharp tail
So he goes on Us long as he lives, throw
ing Off his old shells and getting new
ones.
This Interesting little fellow is well
supplied with eyes, having two large ones
up high on the she'll, to see all about with,
and two more in front.
| must tell YOU how Mamma Horse-foot
makes her nursery. In May or June, when
She has. perhaps, halfa pint feggs under
her shell, and when the tide is in-thlt is,
the water is up high on the shore-she
comes up on the sand as far as She can
without getting out of the water She then
digs hole, and puts the eggs into it-and
that's Just all she does about it. and she
never sees one of the babies.
The next wave covers these eggs up
with sand, and the hot sun matches them
out, and the little ones know everything
belonging to Il crabs education, and can
take care of themselves the minute they
come out of the shell. But the drolleSt
part of the business is the behavior of Mr.
Llmulus. He wants to see that the eggS
are properly laid in tue sand, and he doesn't
want the trouble of walking, 50 the lazy
fellow jumps upon Mamma Limuluss shell
and lets her carry him up, AMI back again
in the same way. That's most as lazy as
our noble red men, who sit and smoke
while their wives work for them-H H.
Miller. IN 81. Nicholas for Ntrch