48 
LETTERS FROM ALABAMA. 
otlier^ with great activity and animation. Probably 
his nest is not far off, for he is by no means shy of 
building around the homestead. His colours, black, 
white, and grey, are strikingly and elegantly dis- 
posed ; but his voice is his transcendent recom- 
mendation. He does not choose to let us hear his 
melody just now, but it is ravishingly sweet, and 
though I am not competent myself to assert, yet 
good judges have asserted, that it is fully equal, 
if not superior, to that of the nightingale.; like 
which it is often heard charming the still hour 
of night. 
I see you are surprised at the rustling noise and 
motion that occurs among the dry leaves on either 
side, at almost every step. It is caused by the 
nimble feet of little lizards, which dart along like 
lightning as we approach, to the shelter of the 
nearest log or stone, under which they may hide : 
they move so quickly that it is very seldom we can 
catch a glance of their bodies ; we trace them only 
by their motion and their sound. There are three 
or four species, the most common of which is called, 
by a strange misnomer, the Scorpion (Agama undu- 
lata ) ; and it is this species which so rapidly 
scuttles along under the crisped leaves. It is 
about six inches long, of which half is tail : above, 
it is greyish, with darker bands ; underneath it is 
palish, with a patch of bright blue under the throat, 
larger in some (I think, males) than in others. It 
is covered with prominent scales, each having a 
sharp ridge, which gives it a rough appearance. 
They are very abundant, and may be often seen 
chasing each other about some old log, running by 
little starts, now on the top, now on the sides, and 
now on the bottom, it being all the same whether 
