160 Fishing in North Carolina. 



mud, and when to become torpid. A change of 

 weather might fool them, or, perhaps, they are 

 more weatherwise than man. Of course, they 

 cannot drown while in the torpid state, but when, 

 warm weather wakes them up they must do some 

 awfully earnest scratching to get up to air quick- 

 ly; or did they retain a small supply of wind 

 after going to sleep ? This is a matter I cannot 

 fathom — posterity may do so — our forefathers, 

 or heretofores, have not enlightened us. 



The frog referred to above was to all intents 

 and purposes a dead frog; he was not stiff, to 

 be sure, but cold and motionless, having even 

 taken the trouble to close his eyes, which is 

 almost a painful job for a frog to do. Out of 

 mere curiosity, a thing that pursues me, I re- 

 solved to keep him for obseiwation ; therefore, 

 I washed the mud off and gently placed him in 

 my outside coat pocket. 



I had forgotten all about my frog until when, 

 about a mile from home, I was startled at hear- 

 ing a loud noise down in my pocket. The other 

 occupants of the carriage being in ig-norance of 



