Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1897-11-27
NOTES ON A LoBsrER,s TOILET.
by a Witness OF the Strange Process
Of She'll Casting.

OA SuSthhBs
From the London Fireside
1t has not happened to every one to see
a lobster cast his shell. Last summer L
had an opportunity of watching the pro-
cess. 1 was staying for several weeks in
secluded little village on the south coast,
and one day. when the only fisherman in
the place returned after taking up his
pots" he flung upon the beach a specf-
men too small for sale or home consump-
ton. Tie prize was taken possession OF
by boy, who presented it to my impro-
vised aquarium. for which all the little
boys of the village were enthusiastic col
lectors. 1 kept water well aersted and
devoted great deal of time and atten-
ton to my various live stock; and at last
my reward came.
At the time of his capture my lobster
had already begun to think about getting a
new suit. and. as the days went by, the old
shell became small for him that he
could no longer avoid discarding his ever
tightening armor. Ore morning, therefore,
1 found my lobster apparently in his last
agonies. He lay on his back and rubbed
his legs convulsively together as II in .n-
tense pain; and then he wrggled about or
jerked himself violently upward by means
OF his tail. 1 suppose that these actions
had for their object the loosening of the
claws and limbs In their sEeaths The
rapid movements somewhat disturbed the
sand and clouded the water; but. as the
patient lay close to the glass. / never en-
tirely lost sight of him. Nevertheless i do
not quite know how ii all occurred. The
throes continued for an hour or more, and
efforts were apparently made to burst the
shell open from within; but il was not
until / saw that the lobster had actually
Invested himself of his headoovering that
i understood what my guest was about.
great deal more wriggling and struggling
followed, the lobster gradually squeezing
himself as 1t were, out of the shoulders
Of his suit of armor.
The operation looked as IL it were ex-
tremely painful and exhausting. but at last
1 had the satisfaction of seeing my lobster
al d his discarded shell lying side by side.
The latter looked much the smaller of the
two, and save that IL was motionless, 1t
might have been mistaken for a live and
healthy crustacean in full dress. The ORR
flee through which the ancient tenant had
evicted himself was very small, and the
headpiece had not been completely thrown
eff, but was left hanging by a hinge.
But now the naked lobster did not look at
all like his old self. His colors were SO
bright as to suggest that he had been par
boiled and he had the tender appearance
OF human flesh from which the skin had
just been removed L took out the shell
and found that my guest had got rid not
only of the major part Of mis- eyes. but also
of the lining of his stomach, including his
internal teeth, end of some Of the bones of
his thorax: yet he seemed to be little the
worse for his thorough turnout. On my
return from luncheon / touched him. and
found that. although quite soft, he was
covered with an incipient shell Of the APP
proximate solidity of oiled tissue paper.
He did net like being touched. During the
three following days the shrimps worried
him a great deal; but he grew with mar
velous rapiGlty until he was fully half as
big again as he lad been, and when once
more touched him the shell on his big
claws was sufficiently hard to enable him
TO give me nip.