SOME NOTES ON LIZARDS, FROGS AND HUMAN BEINGS. 495 
spot, and cautiously approached it, the sound so often repeated suddenly ceased. 
At this stage the frog forgets all about his lady love to whom his song is addressed 
and like ‘‘ brer rabbit lies low and says nuffin.” A contest of patience would then 
ensue between us, the frog remaining silent and I immobile, he waiting for me 
to go, and I pretending I wasn’t there. The frog won every time. My patience 
exhausted, I listened attentively to another vocalist and tried to track him down. 
At close quarters I would scan the ground and the foliage for a moment for a 
glimpse of him, but unsuccessfully. This went on for some days. At intervals 
T would stand out in the rain, in view of other visitors in the hotel, peering into a 
hedge apparently at nothing. This behaviour aroused suspicion among certain 
visitors who did not know me and my ways, and my sanity was questioned. At 
last after repeated failures I offered a reward of four annas to any one who could 
find the mysterious ventriloquist, and in a few minutes all the idle rickshaw 
coolies in the hotel were on the warpath after the elusive little creature. After 
the lapse of a considerable interval one man brought me a tiny little frog 
about an inch long which was obviously a tree frog from its dilated 
toes. Later another of the same kind was brought and then as if by magic every 
cooly had a dozen or so to offer me, Then I sallied forth to learn the secret of 
their discovery. At the back of the hotel was a narrow little water channel that 
flowed into a masonry catchpit for the use of the malis when watering the garden. 
At the edge of this little channel were many arum lilies, and if one searched these 
plants systematically a frog was sure to be disclosed in one of the hollow stems 
just above where it clasps the root. I also found it in other similar plants such 
as wild ginger, and caladiums. Having collected several specimens in various 
jars, and given them foliage and water, my next concern was to hear what sounds 
would emanate therefrom, but they remained strangely silent all day. Prison 
quarters were evidently not conducive to love making. At night I placed the 
jars close to my bed and when the light was out, first one and then another 
piped up and to my delight the author of the clapping notes had been 
unmasked, 
The next morning I identified the species as Ixalus variabilis. It is a pretty 
little brown creature, one inch or slightly longer, with a shapely body, large 
lustrous eye and very short, rather pointed snout. 
The note in this particular species is a monosyllabic short, sharp clap, remind - 
ing one of the noise made by a clapper to scare birds, or that made by castanets, 
and is remarkably loud considering the diminutive creature that produces it. 
It is certainly audible 30 or 40 yards away, and is produced by the male, who 
blows out his vocal sac, so that his throat swells to the size of a small marble. 
The sound is emitted when the sac is at its extreme limit of distension, and the 
sac then collapses like a burst bubble. Ina few moments the vocalist again 
inflates his sac and emits another loud clap. 
During fine weather these sounds are not so much in evidence, but as soon as 
it rains the comparative silence of the welkin is replaced by a clamorous out- 
burst from every castanet frog, who endeavours to outrival his neighbours in 
announcing his whereabouts to his lady love. At night a few desultory claps 
are to be heard when fine, which swell to a tumultuous chorus with the advent 
of a shower. 
This little frog is so plentiful and so small that it forms the staple food of 
most of the frog-loving snakes. It is a convenient size for small snakes to eat, 
and many are not content ;with one fora meal, but swallow two or three at 
a time. 
The stomachs of those I opened were plentifully stocked. A caterpillar that 
feeds on the arum is frequently taken. I found crowds of small spiders and 
many dipterous insects, one in particular being a peculiarly bright iridescent 
green species. 
As regards matrimonial affairs I failed to elicit any thing. I never saw the 
