NATURAL HISTORY. .85 



his burrow as far as six feet from the en- 

 trance. 



" But, boys, as we have begun this morning 

 upon the old subject of tools among animals, 

 I will tell you of something which, though not 

 exactly a tool, is a very useful instrument, 

 and is found belonging to a very common 

 creature. Did you ever take notice of a 

 bat ?" 



" Oh yes, Uncle Philip, often, as they were 

 flying about in a room at night, but not 



nearer.' 1 



" Then you never saw what I mean, I ex- 

 pect. Our common bat, boys, has two very 

 excellent hooks ; one on each of what you 

 call its wings : I say what you call its wings, 

 because the bat is not really a bird, but a 

 quadruped ; that is, an animal with four feet : 

 and when it is on the ground, any one may 

 see that it is a four-footed animal. If a mon- 

 key's paw should be flattened out very much, 

 it would be something like a bat's paw or 

 hand. The long finger-bones are just like 

 the sticks of an umbrella ; there is a thin skin 

 between them, and they stretch it out, so that 

 the air underneath will keep them up. When 

 they are on the ground all this is folded up. 



