THE COMMON FKOG. 97 



for that he caused them to be respected for 

 having saved Abraham from a fiery death. 

 When the Chaldeans had thrown the patriarch 

 into the flames, in order to kill him, frogs came 

 compassionately to the rescue, spat water into 

 the fire, and extinguished it. 



We have not adverted to two very extraordinary 

 phenomena attributed to these reptiles. If the 

 frequency with which accounts of these phe- 

 nomena illustrate the columns of our newspaper 

 press may be accepted as proof of their verity, 

 then there are no mysteries of Batrachian life so 

 true as " showers of frogs," and live frogs or 

 toads found embedded in coal, limestone, granite, 

 &c., immured for ages, or since times cotempo- 

 raneous with the patriarch Noah. We know it 

 is not philosophic to deny, because we cannot 

 explain, any of the marvellous things recorded 

 of sea-serpents, buried toads, or frog-showers ; 

 nevertheless, we will venture to doubt, whilst 

 believing that future generations will, one day, 

 set these matters at rest, beyond the possibility 

 of doubt. It would be folly to deny that there are 

 still very many estimable people in existence who 

 believe in showers of frogs ; perhaps a still larger 

 number with faith in imprisoned reptiles, such as 

 the toad in the coal of the Great Exhibition, or 

 the frog celebrated in the Gainsborough News in 

 the following paragraph : 



