"I UK DARKENING SKY. 



protection against the tarantula, which will never crawl over cactus, but peeps over 

 at the sleeper without daring to disturb him. 



Even our plants partake of this amazing ingenuity. In Shasta county, Cali- 

 fornia, grows the pitcher plant. Its pitcher is six inches long, more than an inch 

 through, and with a lid. The sweet-smelling petals inside tempt bugs and insects, 

 and down they go, the lid closing over and shutting them in. The little hair-barbs 

 sticking downward prevent the insects from climbing out, even if it was not for 

 the lid. 



Having caught a good supply of insects, the pitcher plant absorbs them into its 

 growth, thus proving that inanimate nature is sometimes able to outwit animate 

 nature. 



THE BELTED ARMADILLO. 



Although Equatorial Africa, Southern Africa and India are the homes of most 

 of the wild beasts, birds and reptiles of the world, I must remind you that only a 

 part of the curiosities of the Greatest Show on Earth come from those countries. 



For instance, the odd-looking aye-aye, the sole representative of the chiromyidet 

 family, is a native of Madagascar. In size and shape it bears some resemblance 

 to the domestic cat. Its teeth are large, and consist only of molars and incisors, 

 and, I believe, it makes its nest among the trees. 



Chameleons are found principally in the African continent, the common 

 chameleon ranging only as far east as portions of Central Asia and Ceylon, and as 

 far north as Spain. They are all insectivorous, movr slowly, and possess the 



