BRITISH AMPHIBIANS 
of a host of very minute but active amebocytes—liittle 
creatures who comprise the very simplest form of life. 
These set to, and by dint of sheer unremitting toil the 
labour is at last accomplished. 
“But tragedy crowns the efforts; the amebocytes 
have so overwrought themselves that they die actually of 
overwork, and with the sudden stoppage of their labour 
death supervenes—no profiteering, no unemployment 
benefit, no old-age pension, no retirement of ease, not 
even thanks from the beneficiary, for these hardy 
workers.” 
If an army of young Frogs or 'Toads is encountered at 
the time they have just vacated their hatching quarters, 
and they are on the march, a wonderful sight is presented. 
Many, like their human prototypes, fall by the way, a 
prey to the numerous enemies that beset them, for, let 
it be said, a young Frog, just fresh from its life in a pond, 
is too tempting a morsel for birds and other wild creatures 
to pass over. Many, too, get crushed under foot, 
especially by motor traffic, as these Frog armies have a 
distinct liking for crossing roads during the great marches 
upon which they engage. Whither are they travelling ? 
What instinct is it within them that prompts this perilous, 
but uncontrollable desire to press forward? Curious, 
that in after days, when they have reached the adult 
state, some of these little amphibians return to the same 
pond they left in days gone by. They return, of course, 
for breeding purposes, and have an unfailing habit of 
returning to the same pond year after year. Social in 
32 
