HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



261 



and brought out a frog. The cat brought the frog 

 near to me and laid ir, down on the grass ; the frog 

 lay perfectly still, not even appearing to breathe, 

 and after waiting some two or three minutes it 

 jumped some 15 in., when Tom immediately brought 

 it to bay, and gave it a bard bite for its endeavour 

 to escape ; the frog again remained still and then 

 attempted to leap ; this time it did not go over so 

 much ground. The cat was down upon it in a 

 moment, and bit it much harder, the frog making 

 a peculiar squeak ; it again tried to jump ; but this 

 time the cat killed the frog, and when 1 left had 

 commenced eating it. I have never noticed this 

 before in cats, and should like to know if any other 

 reader of "ours " has noticed anything of the kind. 

 — W. J. Lancaster. 



The Pope as an Aquarium Eish. — Will any 

 reader of Science-Gossip who is practically a 

 keeper of fresh-water aquaria kindly inform me 

 whether a fish called the "Pope" will live in con- 

 finement ? I have tried many times to keep them, 

 but as yet failed, though tolerably successful with 

 other fish. I have carefully watched them with a 

 view to ascertain, if possible, the cause of death, 

 which is apparently very sudden, but cannot 

 ascribe any particular reason. They have been ob- 

 served while swimming briskly or busily searching 

 for food, to suddenly turn on their backs and in a 

 short time cease to exist. There has always been 

 plenty of water, about twenty gallons, which is 

 frequently chauged, &c, with a proper balance as 

 near as possible of animal and vegetable life. They 

 are an ornamental acquisition to the aquarium, beiug 

 from three to four inches long, handsomely marked, 

 and when moving along the bottom of the tank 

 with their dorsal fin erect they have a fierce, bold 

 appearance, like " Warriors grim," and are very 

 conspicuous objects. They seldom come to the 

 surface, but remain at the bottom, either at rest or 

 busily searching under the rock-work, &c, for food ; 

 even in their liberty are seldom found in shallow 

 water, generally where it varies from four to eight 

 feet in depth. Are they fishes of prey ? I had a 

 number of small fish, including several trout, but 

 they did not appear to interfere with them or the 

 other denizens of the aquarium. I intend trying 

 again, but previous to doing so would like to know 

 whether it is an impossibility or not. — Thomas C. 

 Obom, Tangley Park, Guildford. 



Sketches in the West of Ireland.— In the 

 exceedingly interesting account of "Post-Christian 

 Antiquities " in your last [number, by G. H. Kinahan, 

 Esq., a peculiar custom in building some of the 

 churches is pointed out and accounted for in the 

 following quotation: — "In some of the churches, 

 there are peculiar stone projections from the end 

 walls that look like handles, and seem to suggest 

 that the building was constructed after small 

 wooden models, to which were attached handles for 

 carrying them about." This suggestion appears 

 very probable, but does not early Irish history give 

 us the true source from which these models 

 themselves were copied ? We are told that very 

 large numbers of Jews, or rather Israelites, settled 

 in various parts of Ireland and formed very import- 

 ant colonies, established schools, &c. Now, sup- 

 posing these Israelites were among the early con- 

 verts to Christianity, what is more probable than 

 that these churches themselves should be con- 

 structed after the model of the ark of the covenant, 

 which was always carried about with staves or 

 handles ? This ark, we are told, the Israelites 



brought over with them. The sketch given in fig. 

 148 somewhat confirms this idea, the shape of the 

 building being that of the ark with a roof or cover- 

 ing.— a A. 0. 



How do Crickets sing?—" W. B." will find 

 an excellent figure of the musical instrument of the 

 cricket in Todd and Bowman's " Cyclopaedia of 

 Anatomy and Physiology"; or, if this book should 

 not be accessible to him, in Staveley's " British 

 Insects," where he will also find an account of the 

 way in which the sound is produced, exactly tallying 

 with that in Science-Gossip for 1865 ; in West- 

 wood's " Insect Classification," and in other works. 

 " W. B. " has to tell us, to establish his own 

 theory of the sound being produced by friction of 

 the legs, either that he has seen the process during 

 its performance, cr that he has observed some struc- 

 ture in the legs of the cricket that would produce 

 the sound, or even that it is possible for the cricket 

 to put its hind legs together. Is c: W. B. " sure 

 that his specimen was not a female?—/? 7 '. F. 



Warty Newt. — Early in the spring of this year 

 I secured a female of this species, and kept it in an 

 aquarium in my window along with sticklebacks, 

 having fixed a stone in such a position that it 

 could come out of the water and lie upon it, which 

 it often did ; but it would never eat, although 

 offered pieces of small worms and had plenty of 

 water snails if it were so disposed. It changed 

 its skin twice. Its tail was eaten off by degrees to 

 the stump, I suppose by the sticklebacks, but I am 

 not certain; at any rate it died in about three 

 months. I once observed it of a bright silvery shade, 

 changing like the chameleon. The on'y time I ever 

 saw it open its mouth, and, as I thought, going to 

 eat, was one evening when it was lying on the stone. 

 I placed a moth on its nose ; it immediately gave 

 two or three respirations and opened its mouth, but 

 it did not eat the moth, which I found in the same 

 place next morning, the newt not having changed its 

 position. I cannot understand how Mr. C. Robson 

 managed to feed them. I may mention I also had 

 plenty of tadpoles in the aquarium, which the 

 sticklebacks made short work of. — Rev. S. A. 

 Brenan, Pomeroy, co. Tyrone. 



Death of Hedgehogs.— I am glad to see a very 

 grievous subject mooted in your last number under 

 this head, namely, that of cruelty practised on 

 birds and animals by street vendors. I have seen 

 squirrels, apparently tame, sitting on a man's hand ; 

 but upon examination have always found that a small 

 piece of tape is fastened tightly round the neck down 

 to the man's thumb, so the poor squirrel is compelled 

 to be " tame," whether he likes it or not. Starlings 

 may be sometimes seen in our busy streets quietly 

 perched on the finger of a cold-hearted White- 

 chapel bird-catcher ; but it is a case of compulsory 

 perching, for both feet are tied on, and the animal 

 or bird, as the case may be, is undoubtedly drugged 

 as well. It is time such cruel practices were put 

 a stop to, yet the above is a common sight in the 

 streets of London. — E. Lovett. 



Stratagems of Birds. — The curious stratagems 

 adopted by many species of birds (as noted in your 

 last) are highly interesting. The practice of luring 

 the obnoxious individual away from the vicinity of 

 the nest, by the parent bird feigning to be wounded, 

 is not uncommon amongst our small birds, whilst 

 the lapwing {Vanellus cristatus), on being disturbed 

 from its nest, wheels round and round, uttering its 



