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other times with dark purple spots." It was occa- 

 sionally difficult, he observes, to discover the animals 

 among the leaves; in all probability a beneficent pro- 

 vision, enabling the animal more successfully to obtain 

 its insect food, being thus more easily surprised : at 

 night, the colour appeared to be yellow : on a candle 

 being brought within a few inches of the side of one of 

 these chameleons, the light-brown spots began to ap- 

 pear at irregular distances on the side next the light ; 

 these spots deepened in colour till they became of a- 

 dark brown : when the light was removed to a distance, 

 the spots as gradually disappeared, and the animal 

 assumed its usual yellowish hue : the same effect was 

 produced b}^ an irrigation, in imitation of a gentle 

 shower : the animal remained asleep in both cases. On 

 one occasion, the chameleon escaped from the green- 

 house, and was found among some long grass, and in- 

 vested with rather an extraordinary livery, being speckled 

 black and white ; the colours were in large irregular 

 patches: when in this state, its dimensions were con- 

 tracted, as was the case when of a dark colour; a fact 

 observed by Mr. Forbes, especially when the animal 

 became black. On one of these being irritated, the 

 colour changed from the usual greenish mixture to 

 that of a yellowish gray, spotted over with numerous 

 red points, about the size of a pin's head ; the animal 

 became inflated, and it attempted to bite the finger. 

 When the animals became weak, and some short time 

 before they died, their colours were very different from 

 what was observed during health. They became 

 yellow and purple, displayed in large irregular patches, 

 and seemed gradually to brighten as the animals became 

 weaker, and on death they were brightest. This finds 

 a striking analogy in the dolphin ; as, on the approach 

 of death, the colours become more bright. When the 



