Thus we discern the infinite and inexhaustible resources of the Divine Wisdom in contrivances which have for their object the preservation, sustentation, and comfort of worms so obscure and humble as these. Discerning, let us adore!
[1] _Trochus ziziphinus_, which the reader will see figured in the upper right corner of Plate I.
[6] _Nassa reticulata._ A figure of this species is seen in the lower left corner of Plate I.
[7] _Aporrhais pes-pelicani_, which the reader will see figured in the centre of Plate I.
[8] _Cypræa Europæa_, which is delineated in the lower right corner of Plate I.
[9] _Pecten opercularis_, of which see a group in Plate II.
[11] For a description of the mode in which this action is performed, see _Devonshire Coast_, p. 50, _et seq._
[12] Quin died in 1766. Montagu, in 1803, says of this Pecten, that “it is known by the name of Frills or Queens,” with no allusion to the actor. The term “frill” obviously refers to the form of the shell.
[13] The principal figure in Plate III. represents this species (_Pentacta pentactes_) in the expanded condition described in the text.
[14] _Sipunculus punctatissimus_, figured in Plate III., to the left.
What will Babbicombe Bay yield us this fine February morning? One thing at least it yields, a magnificent coast view; and this is scarcely affected by the season. Let there be only a moderately clear atmosphere, a sky chequered with blue spaces and white wind-borne clouds, and snatches of sunshine interchanging with shadows,--which last there will be, of course, with such a sky,--and such a prospect cannot fail to please.
And, indeed, this noble sweep of precipitous coast can hardly be surpassed for beauty all round the sea-girt shores of Britain. The forms of the cliffs are imposing: their broad masses of vivid colour alternating,--the white compact limestone, the bright red sandstone, becoming almost scarlet as the sun shines out full, yet prevented from being tawdry by its harmonies with the various hues of green that crown it, by its own breadth of light and shadow, by its dimming tints as it softens and mellows into the purple of the distance; the panorama of blue hills rising and fading far inland, the Tors and heights of Dartmoor and Exmoor; and the ever-changing sea, now laughing in its brightness, now frowning and chafing in its wrath, filling so vast an area as it does from this vantage height;--these are the broader features of a scene which I will pause a moment to depict in detail, before I descend to the beach.