524 



THE SALAMANDER AND THE NEWT. 



The ISalamander {Salamand)-a maculosa). 



are furnished with teeth, and the palate is toothed in some species. 

 The skin is without scales, and either smooth or covered with wart- 

 like excrescences. There is no true breast-bone, but some species have 



ribs. 



The celebrated Salamander, the subject of so many strange fables, 

 is a species found in many parts of the continent of Europe. 



This creature was 

 formerly thought to 

 be able to w^ithstand 

 the action of fire, and 

 to quench even the 

 most glowing furnace 

 with its icy body. It 

 is singular how such 

 ideas should have 

 been so long promul- 

 gated, for, although 

 Aristotle repeated 

 the tale on hearsay, 

 Pliny tried the ex- 

 periment by putting 

 a Salamander into the fire, and remarks, with evident surprise, that it 

 was burned to a powder. A piece of cloth dipped in the blood of a 

 Salamander was said to be unhurt by fire, and certain persons had in 

 their possession a fireproof fabric, made, as they stated, of Salamander's 

 wool, but which proved to be asbestos. 



The Salamander is a terrestrial species, frequenting the water only 

 for the purpose of depositing its young, which leave the Qgg before 

 they enter into independent existence. It is a slow and timid animal, 

 generally hiding itself in some convenient crevice during the day, and 

 seldom venturing out except at night or in rainy weather. It feeds on 

 slugs, insects, and similar creatures. During the cold months it retires 

 into winter-quarters, generally the hollow of some decaying tree or be- 

 neath mossy stones, and does not reappear until the spring. 



The ground color of this species is black, and the spots are light yel- 

 low. Along the sides are scattered numerous small tubercles. 



The common Newt, Asker, Effet, Eft, or Evat, as it is indiflfer- 

 ently termed, is well known throughout England. At least two species 

 of Newt inhabit England, and some authors consider that the number 

 (jf species is still greater. We shall, however, according to the system 

 employed in this work, follow the arrangement of the British Museum, 

 which accepts only two species, the others being merely noted as vari- 

 eties. * -^ 



The Crested Newt derives its popular name from the membranous 



