58 THE TOAD. 



many other countries. In France the frogs make 

 such a croaking, that we hardly wonder at the rather 

 tyrannous conduct of the noblesse just before the 

 great Revolution. When the nobility or courtiers 

 spent any time in the country, the miserable peasants 

 were forced to flog the water all night, on purpose to 

 keep the frogs quiet, for their croaking was so noisy 

 that the fastidious senses of the fashionables could 

 not be lulled to sleep. 



Now-a-days, the people don't seem to be satisfied 

 with the country croakings, but they import the 

 horrid sounds into the city by means of a toy called 

 a "grenouille," which, when set in motion, makes a 

 croaking sound just like that of a frog. 



As a general fact, frogs are just endurable, and 

 people will inspect them — from a distance — without 

 much ado. But the case is widely altered when they 

 see the frog's first-cousin, the Toad. 



A large volume might easily be filled with tales 

 respecting this much-calumniated creature ; in which 

 tales the toad appears to be a very incarnation of 

 malignity, and to be wholly formed of poison. If it 

 burrowed near the root of a tree, every one who ate 

 a leaf of that tree would die ; and, if he only handled 

 it, would be struck with sudden cramp. And the cause 

 of this poisonous nature was its liver, which was 

 " very vitious, and causeth the whole body to be of 

 an ill temperament ". 



Fortunately, toads had two livers ; and although 



