

STRUCTURE OF SKIN OF TOAD. 123 



November, when the charr enter the dubb, 

 so great is the crowd of fish, that the water 

 is actually darkened by them. What a curious 

 sight it must be ! 



PISCATOK. I have been assured of the same 

 by a friend, a naturalist, who has witnessed 

 it himself, as I hope some day to do. 



AMICUS. Here in the grass is a young toad, 

 fully formed, yet so small, that very recently 

 it must have been a tadpole. In miniature, 

 it has the repulsive aspect of the full-grown 

 reptile ! Is its ugliness its defence ? Its ac- 

 tivity is hardly sufficient to secure it against 

 enemies. How easily I have caught it ! 



PISCATOR. Its aspect certainly is as little 

 inviting as that of the full-grown, but it is not 

 to this, I apprehend, it owes its safety; rather, 

 as in the instance of its senior, to its being 

 unpalatable. If your curiosity is strong enough 

 to overcome an aversion, and you bring the 

 little toad in contact with the tip of your 

 tongue, you will experience a disagreeable 

 taste; at least, this is the result of my ex- 

 perience ; and leading me to the conclusion 

 that the structure of its young skin, like 

 that of the old animal, is glandular, and its 





