332 RAMBLES ABOUT HOME. 



saw enough at the time to satisfy me that the sound was 

 produced by the escape of the air that filled the enor- 

 mous sack at its throat. 



During the month of April, 1881, I had an excellent 

 opportunity for observing these creatures ; and, finding 

 that but little had been recorded concerning them, I 

 availed myself of the chance with all the more earnest- 

 ness, and watched them closely for several weeks. 



While a network of ditches in a low meadow were 

 being repaired, extended, and cleaned, I followed the 

 workmen closely, for the purpose of gathering any novel- 

 ties that might be thrown out with the mud and dead 

 leaves that had accumulated in them. Much of interest 

 was found ; but the one striking feature of the locality 

 at this time was ths wonderful abundance of little 

 " peepers," or, in dignified language, hylodes. They were 

 in full song, and when not disturbed, made more noise 

 than all the frogs in the neighborhood. They were 

 quite timid, however, and, on being approached, were 

 straightway " mum." Their vocal efforts seemed to in- 

 crease until the first week in May, when their eggs were 

 deposited in little masses which were attached to the 

 blades of rank grass floating on the surface of the water. 

 I did not succeed in following the various stages of de- 

 velopmental growth from the egg to the matured animal, 

 but I was enabled to determine that it was more pro- 

 tracted than in the common tree-toacl. The difference 

 is, I am led to think, about six or seven weeks. The tardi- 

 ness of growth is occasioned by the slow development of 

 the limbs, which do not, I think, begin to grow until late 

 in the summer. 



From the date of their earliest appearance in spring 

 in considerable numbers until about the last week in 

 May the meadows are literally alive with them. Wher- 



