506 Eeptiles. 



of the water. The hinder legs of the Frog are much 

 longer than the fore ones, to help it in its repeated and 

 extensive leaps. The whole of the body bears a little 

 resemblance to some of the warm-blooded animals, prin- 

 cipally about the thighs and the toes. The Frog is ex- 

 tremely tenacious of life, and often survives the abscission 

 of its head for several hours. It is supposed that Frogs 

 spend the whole winter at the bottom of some stagnant 

 water in a state of torpidity. 



There are several species of the Frog ; they are all 

 oviparous, and the eggs are gelatinous. The Edible Frog 

 is the species used in France and Germany for food; it 

 is considerably larger than the common kind, and though 

 rare in England, is very plentiful in France, Germany, 

 and Italy. Its colour is olive green, marked with black 

 patches on the back, and on its limbs with transverse 

 bars of the same. From the tip of the nose three distinct 

 stripes of pale yellow extend to the extremity of the 

 body, the middle one slightly depressed, and the lateral 

 ones considerably elevated. The upper parts are of a 

 pale whitish colour, tinged with green, and marked with 

 irregular brown spots. These creatures are brought 

 from the country, thirty or forty thousand at a time, to 

 Vienna, and sold to the great dealers, who have frog- 

 geries for them, which are pits four or five feet deep, 

 dug in the ground, the mouth covered with a board, and 

 in severe weather with straw. In the year 1793, there 

 were but three great dealers in Vienna, by whom those 

 persons who brought them to the markets ready for the 

 cook were supplied. Only the legs and thighs are eaten, 

 and these are always skinned. They are rather dear, 

 being considered a great delicacy. The Edible Frogs 

 are caught in various ways, sometimes in the night, by 

 means of nets, into which they are attracted by the light 

 of torches that are carried out for the purpose, and some- 

 times by hooks, baited with worms, insects, flesh, or 

 even a bit of red cloth. They are exceedingly voracious, 

 and seize everything that moves before them. 



