Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1874-03-05
An Odd Fellow.

That's tough story, but-dear me!
its nothing to what you'll have to
believe when you come to study the
curious creatures that live in the sea.
AS to carrying his house about with
him, that is nothing new, all crabs and
turtles do that, but I must admit he's
the only fellow I ever heard of who
has teeth ON his legs. If you and |
are not acquainted with him, it is mere
ly because we haven't been prying in
to the domestic manners Of the crab
family all these years, as some scien-
tifc gentlemen have. They have
known about him these many years,
and he has even got into the dictiona-
~. Look in Webster's big dictionary,
at the word Limulus, and you'll see a
picture of him. Limulus, you must
know, is his grand Latin name, which
he doesn't wear at home in the sea.
There he is called Horse foot Grab, or
King Crab.
And there's another droll thing a
bout m,-hes just the shape Of the
bottom of a horses foot, with a long
sharp tail striking out at the heel.
He's a funny sight when he is digging
and diggingis special delight, I can
tell you. His shell is in two pieces ;
the front piece bends down and shoy-
eles 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 doesent take long for him to bur
row into the mud out Of sight.
But I haven't told you about those
useful legs, which do the work ofiaws,
besides their regular business Of carry
ing their owner about.
There are five pair Of them, besides
a short pair in front, called teelers, or
antennp, if you want the book
name. The first four pair are furnished
with sharp teeth lots Of them, some
times Us many as hundred ana n1ty'
When this comical gentleman wants
to eat, he seizes a soft worm, OF some
other sea delicacy, with his two hind
feet, and holds it up to his mouth,
which is conveniently placed among
all these useful legs. Then the hun
dred 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 Gu
rious 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 natu-
ralist saw the whole performance.
But | haven't told you half the Won
derful things about him. When he
is first hatched he is quarter of an
inch in diameter, has no tail, and has
a shell just the right size for him, Of
course. When he gets bigger he out
grows the shell, as you youngsters
do your clothes, and he has to get out
of the old suit. It's very droll sight
to see him come out of himself in that
way. He don't have so much trouble
about it as Holsters and some other
crabs do-he justs splits open the
front edge of his shell and pulls
himself out. But you know he has
been growing some time since that ba,,
by suit fitted him, and the fact is, he
he has been very much crowded these
last few days. So when he gets fair
ly out of the shell, he swells out an
inch Or two bigger than he was before,
and in short time he has another
shell big enough for him, besides lit
tie sharp tail.
So he goes on as long as he lives,
throwing off his old shells and getting
new ones.
This interesting little fellow is we'll
supplied with eyes, having two large
ones up high on the shell, to see all
about with, and two more in front.
| must tell you how Mama Horse
foot makes nursery. In May or June,
when she has, perhaps, half pint of
eggs under her shell, and when the
tide is in-that 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 a