KKCliKATiVK NATl'KAL HISTokY. 



Ill 



to complain), the complainant in a suit in opposition to tho 

 il.T. -n< hint Plaintiff and plaintive are the name word* differently 



" We were ban entertained with an ecbo repeating a whole vena in 



r uud more )>Miutiv tone, indeed, but with (urprisiug precision 



aud distinctness." Kuttact, "Italy." 



Jr. For remarks on this suffix and its meaning, see Or. 



KECREATIVE NATURAL HISTORY. 



THE FROG. 



' \VII.VT ore the frogs about this morning, mother?" said a 

 keen little country boy to a stout dame, who wan carrying on 

 her head a basket of live poultry to the neighbouring market 

 town. " Oh, bloss'ee, child," replied the matter-of-fact woman, 

 " how should I know what the frogs be a-doing P Thee'd better 

 be a-larning yer Catechism for schoolmaster, than go a wool- 

 gathering about them frogs." The boy felt he should get no 

 help from "mother," though he "did mightily wish to know" 

 what made tho frogs croak BO much in the early twilight of that 

 spring morning. 



Now, reader, can you tell why the frogs were thus croaking 

 from every shallow pool and moat P Draw near to the places 

 whence the sounds proceed. What multitudes of frogs are just 

 showing their heads above tho water ; how earnestly they give 

 out that croak, croak, croak ; and their bright eyes show a 

 singular excitement for such cold creatures ! See what a gluey- 

 like substance, speckled with numerous black spots, floats on 

 the water. Ah ! that explains tho agitation in the frog kingdom 

 this morning. The race of these creatures is not to perish, like 

 the dodo or the old English rat ; provision is now being made 

 for the next generation of these unlovely but interesting reptiles. 

 The black specks in that jelly-looking substance are the eggs, 

 which have just been deposited, and tho parents are singing a 

 merry ditty on the happy occasion. By each one of those female 

 frogs above 1,200 eggs will be placed in the water, where the 

 sun will gradually develop the hidden life in each dark speck. 



Has the reader ever traced the growth of a frog from the 

 egg? The process is worthy of observation. Let us collect 

 some of that substance in which the eggs are embedded, and 

 place it in a vessel, with some of the water and weeds from the 

 pool. We may now be able to watch all the changes. What is 

 the first transformation ? The egga become marked with little 

 furrows, some vital power being clearly at work within. Next 

 we see, in place of the egg, a tiny lump of jelly-like life, which 

 clings to one of the water weeds. How does it hold on ? By a 

 small sucker, which it clearly knows how to use. Is this, then, 

 the first form of the frog baby ? Tho reader may call it so, if 

 ho please, but it is not a frog at all yet. Mark the third 

 change ; our bit of jelly has acquired gills and a tail, and see 

 how swiftly it moves in the water. It is now really a fish, 

 though called a tadpole. But what is going to happen ? The 

 animal is changing again ; a pair of hind legs are forming. 

 This is the fourth state. What next ? A pair of front limbs are 

 developed, and it is now evident that the creature does not mean 

 to remain a fish ; it has reached the fifth transformation. But 

 what has become of the long tail ? Has a part dropped off ? 

 Certainly not ; it has been absorbed into the animal's system, 

 and will soon entirely disappear. We have here reached the 

 sixth stage in a frog's life. The mouth now gradually widens, 

 assuming the form which belongs to the fully-developed reptile. 

 Are the transformations complete now ? No ; the most remark- 

 able change is the last. Hitherto the creature has breathed by 

 gills a beautiful living machine for obtaining oxygen from 

 water; but now a means must be provided for breathing air. 

 Lungs, therefore, are gradually formed, and tho whole series of 

 wonderful transmutations is complete. Thus our frog has passed 

 through eight changes, each bringing him one step nearer to the 

 final shape and condition. All these mysterious processes can 

 be noted by many readers for themselves, and some will, doubt- 

 less, take opportunities for tracing tho frog from its cradle to 

 " full age." In worm and moist weather the newly-perfected 

 frogs appear in such multitudes that the lanes swarm with the 

 little creatures, and it is difficult to walk without stepping on 

 them. Indeed the rustics of some districts believe in "frog 

 showers," thus accounting for the sudden and numerous swarms 

 of hopping reptiles. 



Catch a foil-grown frog, place him under ft glass Yeses! into 

 which air can freely enter, and watch him. How he puffs! 

 What causes that gasping, gulping motion in his throat t He 

 i swallowing air, and forcing it into the long*. The Uuk is 

 evidently a laborious one ; see how tightly he shots the month 

 at intervals, lost tho air should escape. Why most the nesluie 

 use such violent efforts to keep its long* inflafrri, when we 

 breathe almost unconsciously? Oar ribs keep the chest ex- 

 panded without exertion ; bat the frog has no ribi, and ft 

 succession of "gulps" is necessary to draw officiant sir into 

 the lungs. No doubt the absence of ribs is good for the frog, 

 but the work of filling "the chest" i much harder in conse- 

 quence. When a man is engaged in strong exercise, and requites 

 an increased supply of air, the month is opened to allow of mote 

 free breathing ; bat if wo keep the frog's month open for a abort 

 time, the animal dies from suffocation. The frog can, how* 

 ever, absorb air through his skin, having in this respect some 

 advantage over as. Indeed, the covering membrane of this 

 animal may be called an absorbing machine, as by it the reptile 

 can imbibe, in a short time, water equal in weight to that of the 

 whole body. Suppose a man weighing one hundred pounds 

 were capable of absorbing through his skin, in one hoar and ft 

 half, a hundred- weight of water, this would only be on a par with 

 the imbibing power of the frog. Thus it happens that the 

 animal has generally a supply of water at command, and when 

 suddenly startled from a soft resting-place, indignantly ejects a 

 quantity of pure water at the intruder. At one time this 

 emitted fluid was supposed to be poisonous ; bat if any reader 

 is enthusiastic enough to taste the liquid, ho will ascertain its 

 nature. There will not be much to boast of in this feat, the 

 experiment having been often made. 



The skin of the frog is, in places, so transparent, that the 

 blood may be seen circulating in the vessels beneath, by the 

 aid of a powerful microscope. The foot shows this beautiful 

 process in the most impressive degree. 



Can a frog bite ? The reader can put his finger for a short 

 time into the reptile's month, and thus get a reply for himself. 

 We say for a short time, presuming that the experimenter does 

 not wish to suffocate his frog, which would be the result of long 

 keeping its mouth from closing. Well, our naturalist has made 

 the trial, and finds that nothing like a bite can be given. There 

 ore, indeed, about eighty teeth in the mouth, but they are all in 

 on undeveloped state. The frog can " bolt," bat not masticate 

 its food, and why teeth are given at all is a mystery. 



The use to which a frog or toad can put its tongue is best 

 seen when the creature is at dinner, feasting on insects and ants. 

 The tongue then acts as a javelin, a trap, and a hand. How 

 still the reptile stands, as he feeds ; how rapidly that wonder* 

 fully elastic tongue darts out upon the unsuspecting ante ; how 

 sure is the* aim ; how firmly the prey is held by the trap-like 

 point ; and how instantaneously the living food is harried to the 

 captor's mouth ! When the meal is over the tongue is doubled 

 up, the tip being then at the back of the month. The frog may 

 well dispense with teeth, having such a compensating apparatus. 



The heart of a frog has some resemblance to that of ft fish, 

 having, strictly speaking, bat two divisions instead of the four 

 found in tho hearts of the larger animals. This reptile is rather 

 a phlegmatic little fellow, the circulation of the blood being 

 very slow, though quick enough for all his wants. 



We have referred to the absence of ribs in the frog, bat the 

 creature has a well-set, though short spine, and its muscular 

 strength is enormous. Measure the length of a frog's leap, 

 when the jump is done in good style. It will often be found 

 that this dull-looking creature is able to leap about fifty time* 

 its length at one bound. If a man had muscular power equal 

 to that of a frog he could clear 300 feet at a jump, and would 

 bo able to leap over a wall 100 feet high. What lover of gym- 

 nastics will not henceforth look upon a frog with deep respect! 



These reptiles and their cousins, the toads, can endure sur- 

 prisingly long fasts, for months sometimes, especially if allowed 

 the privilege of living in a damp place. They also reach 

 comfortable old age, living to about fifty years, when permitted 

 to pass life in a quiet and do-nothing style. But some readers 

 may here remind as that frogs and toads have been said to 

 live for hundreds of years, in the hearts of trees or rooks, 

 without food or air. If this were so, we should say these were 

 very lucky frogs indeed, and we should like to possess one 

 of the breed. Wj might, indeed, offer a silver medal to any 



