'I20 THE MEANING OF EVOLUTION 



one, and I had picked from it a more than commonly 

 unappetizing- looking toad, which proved to be a 

 mother which had not yet laid her eggs. As I held 

 her in my hands and exhibited her various points to 

 my pupils, I told them of Prof. Cope's statement. I 

 also told them of my unsuccessful attempt the previ- 

 ous year to verify the statement. I added, however, 

 that I would not repeat this experiment on this un- 

 appetizing specimen. Hereupon the toad not only 

 exuded, but squirted, from a gland over her left 

 shoulder blade a fluid, milky-like in appearance, and 

 forming a jet as thin as a needle, but ejected with 

 force enough to strike my face, which was at least 

 fifteen inches away. I moistened my finger on my 

 tongue, lifted the fluid from my cheek, and tasted it. 

 Cope was right. A toad can exude a most nauseous 

 fluid. Horsechestnuts extracted and distilled might 

 possibly provide something as bitter. Why did I not 

 find this in the preceding case ? I have too few obser- 

 vations on which to base a conclusion, but I have a 

 suspicion as to the reason. In the case of the toad 

 which spurted the fluid in my face, we had a creature 

 with whose life were tied up the lives of her many 

 offspring, to be produced from the eggs she was 

 so soon to lay. Under conditions like these, na- 

 ture is more than commonly careful of her children. 

 Whether this be the reason or not, toads do not al- 



