Moreover, when the stomach is laid open, three large reddish teeth are seen to project conspicuously into its interior (fig. 6, _lt_, _mt_); so that, in addition to its six pairs of jaws, the crayfish has a supplementary crushing mill in its stomach. On each side of the stomach, there is a soft yellow or brown mass, commonly known as the {31} liver (fig. 5, _Lr_); and, in the breeding season, the ovaries of the females, or organs in which the eggs are formed, are very conspicuous from the dark-coloured eggs which they contain, and which, like the exoskeleton, turn red when they are boiled. The corresponding part in a cooked lobster goes by the name of the “coral.” Beside these internal structures, the most noticeable are the large masses of flesh, or muscle, in the thorax and abdomen, and in the pincers; which, instead of being red, as in most of the higher animals, is white. It will further be observed that the blood, which flows readily when a crayfish is wounded, is a clear fluid, and is either almost colourless, or of a very pale reddish or neutral tint. Hence the older Naturalists thought that the crayfish was devoid of blood, and had merely a sort of ichor in place of it. But the fluid in question is true blood; and if it is received into a vessel, it soon forms a soft, but firm, gelatinous clot. * * * * * The crayfish grows rapidly in youth, but enlarges more and more slowly as age advances. The young animal which has just left the egg is of a greyish colour, and about one quarter of an inch long. By the end of the year, it may have reached nearly an inch and a half in length. Crayfishes of a year old are, on an average, two inches long; at two years, two inches and four-fifths; at three years, three inches and a half; at four years, four inches and a half nearly; and at five years, five inches. They {32} go on growing till, in exceptional cases, they may attain between seven inches and eight inches in length; but at what degree of longevity this unusual dimension is reached is uncertain. It seems probable, however, that the life of these animals may be prolonged to as much as fifteen or twenty years. They appear to reach maturity, so far as the power of reproduction is concerned, in their fifth or, more usually, their sixth year. However, I have seen a female, with eggs attached under the abdomen, only two inches long, and therefore, probably, in her second year. The males are commonly larger than females of the same age. * * * * *