PREFACE . 



Linnaeus had but a poor opiniou of the Amphibia and their 

 describers, or he would not have called the former " pessima 

 tetraque animalia," nor would he have dismissed the latter with 

 the terse remark : " Amphibiologi omnium paueissimi sunt 

 nullique veri." That was, however, nearly 150 years ago; and 

 at the present time there are fewer difficulties in writing a book 

 on Amphibia and Reptiles. Those who care for the study of 

 Amphibia and Reptiles — the Herpetologists, to give them their 

 scientific title— r-have never been numerous ; but most of them 

 have been serious students. One reason for the fact that this 

 branch of Natural History is not very popular, is a prejudice 

 against creatures some of which are clammy and cold to the 

 touch, and some of which may be poisonous. People who 

 delight in keeping Newts or Frogs, Tortoises or Snakes, are, as 

 a rule, considered eccentric. But in reality these cold-blooded 

 creatures are of fascinating interest provided they are studied 

 properly. The structure of animals is intimately connected with 

 their life-habits ; and this correlation is perhaps more apparent in 

 Amphibia and Keptiles than in any other class. The anatomist 

 who studies internal and external structure is as much struck 

 with the almost endless variety in details as he who takes the 

 trouble to observe the living animal in its native haunts, or at 

 least under conditions not too unnatural. He will agree with 

 V. von Scheli'ers Toad " that those above seem to have no 



