in the same manner, and its life is indestructible till it is removed
from its proper element, and the glutinous matter which makes its
vitality has been boiled out of its pores, leaving the soft and
beautiful skeletons, of which these cases contain many specimens. Here
also are some old sponges preserved in flint. Having noticed these
beautiful zoophytes, the visitor should proceed in an easterly
direction into the room he recently quitted, to examine the table
cases it contains. The first tables to which he should direct his
attention here, are those in which a series of Crustacea or
hard-coated animals are deposited. They are of Cuvier's order of
animal life, known as the articulata, or animals whose bodies consist
of a series of moveable joints. These are mostly inhabitants of the
sea, and rank in the animal kingdom as the highest class of the
Articulata, except the insects, who head the order. The tables upon
which the Crustacea or

SHELL FISH,

are deposited, are numbered from 13 to 24. The four first cases
(13-16) are covered with Crabs of various kinds, including the
long-legged spider-crabs, common crabs with oysters growing upon their
backs, and fin-footed swimming crabs. The next case (17) contains in
addition to the long-eyed or telescope crab, varieties of the
land-crab, which is found in various parts of India; one kind, that
swarms in the Deccan, commits great ravages in the rice-fields. The
two next tables are covered with Chinese crabs, square-bodied crabs;
those crabs with fine shells known as porcelain crabs, and the curious
death's head crab, which seems to build a kind of nest of sponge or
shells. But upon the next table (20) the visitor will find the most
remarkable of the crabs, together with an astonishing lobster. This