41) NATURALIST'S CABINET. 



Description. 



CHAP. II. 



" Toad that under the cold stone 

 Days and nights has thirty-one 

 Swelter'd venom sleeping got, 

 Boil thou first i' th' charmed pot.** 



SHAKESPEAR. 



THE TOAD. 



i HIS animal, which is easily recognised by its 

 livid appearance and sluggish and disgusting 

 movements, is, in figure, nature, and appetites, 

 like the frog. In Europe it is of a consider- 

 able size, the smallest individuals measuring 

 six inches in length. Its eyes are remarkably 

 beautiful, having a brilliant reddish gold-colored 

 iris surrounding the dark pupil, and forming a 

 a striking contrast with the remainder of its 

 body. 



These animals are so extremely numerous in 

 Carthagena and Porto Bello in America, that, in 

 rainy weather, not only all the marshy grounds, 

 but the gardens, courts, and streets are almost 



