Bibliographical Notices, 5 1 



ment, and we believe we cannot do better, either for our readers or 

 Mr. Gosse, than by letting that gentleman speak for himself. 



Speaking of Lizards (p. 74), he says — 



" One feature with which a stranger cannot fail to be struck on his 

 arrival in the island, and which is essentially tropical, is the abun- 

 dance of the lizards that everywhere meet his eye. As soon as ever 

 he sets foot on the beach, the rustlings among the dry leaves, and 

 the dartings hither and thither among the spiny bushes that fringe 

 the shore, arrest his attention * ; and he sees on every hand the beau- 

 tifully coloured and meek-faced Ground Lizard (Anieiva dorsalis) 

 scratching like a bird among the sand, or peering at him from be- 

 neath the shadow of a great leaf, or creeping stealthily along with its 

 chin and belly upon the earth, or shooting over the turf with such k 

 rapidity that it seems to lly rather than run. By the roadsides and 

 in the open pastures, and in the provision-grounds of the negroes, 

 still he sees this elegant and agile lizard ; and his prejudices against 

 the reptile races must be inveterate indeed, if he can behold its gentle 

 countenance, and timid but bright eyes, its chaste but beautiful hues, 

 its graceful form and action, and its bird-like motions, with any other 

 feeling than admiration. 



" As he walks along the roads and lanes that divide the properties, 

 he will perceive at every turn the smooth and trim little figures of 

 the Wood-slaves {Mabouya agilis), basking on the loose stones of the 

 dry walls ; their glossy fish-like scales glistening in the sun with 

 metallic brilliance. They lie as still as if asleep ; but on the intruder's 

 approach they are ready in a moment to dart into the crevices of the 

 stones and disappear until the danger is past. 



" If he looks into the outbuildings of the estates, the mill-house, 

 or the boiling-house, or the cattle-sheds, a singular croaking sound 

 above his head causes him to look up ; and then he sees clinging to 

 the rafters, or crawling sluggishly along with the back downward, 

 three or four lizards, of form, colour, and action very diverse from 

 those he has seen before. It is the Gecko, or Croaking Lizard {Theca- 

 dactylus IcBvis), a nocturnal animal in its chief activity, but always 

 to be seen in these places, or in hollow trees, even by day. Its ap- 

 pearance is repulsive, I allow, but its reputation for venom is libel- 

 lous and groundless. 



"The stranger walks into the dwelling-house. Lizards, lizards, 

 still meet his eye. The little Anoles {A. iodurus, A. opalinus, &c.) 

 are chasing each other in and out between the jalousies, now stopping 

 to protrude from the throat a broad disk of brilliant colour, crimson 

 or orange, like the petal of a flower, then withdrawing it, and again 

 displaying it in coquettish play. Then one leaps a yard or two 

 through the air, and alights on the back of his playfellow ; and both 

 struggle and twist about in unimaginable contortions. Another is 

 running up and down on the plastered wall, catching the ants as they 

 roam in black lines over its whited surface ; and another leaps from 

 the top of some piece of furniture upon the back of the visitor's 



* " Nunc virides etiam occultant spineta lacertos." — Virg. 



4* 



