EXPLORATIONS * 



He is a shy fellow, this inch-long brown 

 frog that swells his throat till it is like 

 a balloon and pipes forth this mellow note, 

 and he is even more invisible than the 

 wood- frog. You may seek him diligently 

 for years and not find him, for his voice 

 is that of a ventriloquist and he seems to 

 send it hither and thither. It is as if this 

 were a trick of some frisky Ariel of the 

 wood that danced about and whistled, now 

 before and now behind you. When the 

 trill comes in it you may well think the 

 tricksy spirit is laughing at you so that 

 his voice shakes. It would be no surprise 

 if some trilling note ended in a giggle 

 and Ariel himself should float by you on 

 the mocking air. 



The great chorus of spring peepers is 

 to come later ; now, but an occasional one 

 has waked from his frosty nest beneath 



the woodland leaves and come down to 

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