PRICE SIX CENTS 
$2.50 PER YEAR. 
[Entered according t o Act of CongreaB, in the year 1877, by the Itural Publishing Company, in the office of the Librarian of Congress at Washington.] 
formation, certain it is that the shape of the 
ant-eator admirably fits it for success in life. 
Of this genua there are three species on this 
Continent, all indigenous to South America. Of 
those the largoBt is the four-toed great ant-eater 
or ant-bear, which, full-grown, is about four and 
a half feet long, exclusive of its bushy tail which 
is about three feet; while the least is tho little 
two-toed ant-eater, about the size of a squirrel 
with a body from six to seven inches long, a head 
about two inches, and a tail fully nine i riches. 
Between these comes the Tauiandua ant-eater, 
the subject of our present illustration. This, 
also, has four toes, and is about tho size of a 
cat- say of the Thomas persuasion -being about 
25 inches long with a tail from 1 ft to IK inches. 
The limbs of all, especially tho anterior, are 
very robust, and furnished with long, com¬ 
pressed, acute uails admirably adapted either 
for breaking into tho hillocks which some species 
of ants in the tropical regions construct as dwel¬ 
ling-places, or for tearing oft' tho hark of trees 
in search of the arboreal or carpenter-ants which 
either build their nests between the bark and 
the stem, or excavate cells in the solid timber of 
growing trees. In all, too, tho hones of the 
jaws and nose are remarkably elongated into a 
kind of tube, nearly cylindrical, at tho end of 
Which is a small, circular mouth, from which, 
as shown in our engraving, is protruded, a long, 
worm-like tongue covored with a glutinous 
saliva, with which the animal’s appropriate food 
is captured. Iu feeding they either 4 thrust this 
slimy tongue into the orifice of the ant-houso 
and withdraw it covered with insects, or else 
having exposed their prey ny means of their 
stout claws, they transfer, with marvelous celer¬ 
ity, tho terrified ants to their stomachs by re¬ 
peated extensions and retractions of the tongue— 
an operation which is often performed twice in a 
second. 
Tho tails both of the Tamaudua and of the 
two-toed ant-eater are destitute of hair on tho 
lower side, and as preliensible as a monkey’s, 
thus enabling them to climb trees readily and to 
hang, head downwards, in searching for their 
prey, just as shown in tho accompanying cut. 
The Tamaudua Indeed is wholly a sylvan animal 
living exclusively in trees and rarely found on 
tho ground where tho shape of its fore feet, re¬ 
quiring it to walk on the side of the foot, reudern) 
it extremely awkward and lielplesH. The color 
of the animal varies considerably iu different In¬ 
dividuals, but ordinarily the hoad as far as tho 
nape of the neck, as well as the feet and tail are 
a pale, yol lowish gray. flonimoncing at the neck, 
near each shoulder, a dark stripe exteuds irregu¬ 
larly along the body as Tar as tho falso ribs, and 
tills Isa distinctive peculiarity of the species. 
All the nut-eaters are nocturnal iu their habits, 
sleeping by day aud sallying forth at night In 
search of their food. The Tamaudua aud ant- 
bear have both been domesticated, and then 
feed upon milk in which small pieces of bread or 
biso- 'i. have been broken, as well as upon minced 
meat and small insects. 
THE TAMANDUA ANT-EATER 
TAMANDUA TETRADACTYLA. 
TWO EXPERIMENTS IN FARMING. 
A Brief Comparison of the Results. 
Thf. generally accepted doctrine maintains that 
the conformation of each species of animals has 
from the date of its creation, beon beneflciently 
adapted to the inanuor of life it waB intended 
from the first that it should load. If its struc¬ 
ture, therefore, conspicuously fits it. for preying 
upon auy other class of creatures, it is evident, 
according to this belief, that it was graciously 
designed from the outset that these should be 
its victims. The adherents of tho new theory of 
Evolution, on the othor.hand, boldly assert that 
all tho peculiarities of structure in eaoli animal 
have been gradually developed by successive ac¬ 
cumulations during immeasurable ages in accor¬ 
dance with the conditions under which they 
lived, or to use Hkubkrt Hjucnoeu’s pet word, 
their environment. These theorists declare that 
during this long process, vast numbers of species, 
aud even genera, perished, and that those alone 
survived, which wore Lest adapted to struggle 
for a livelihood, on account or sumo peculiarity 
of structure, accidental iu the first possessor, but 
transmitted to its fortunate descendants, among 
whom it gradually increased as the ages rolled 
away. 
Now, whether the result of original or gradual 
BV CONRAD WTLSON 
EXPERIMENT NO. I. 
The valuo of an agricultural experiment is 
largely determined by the manner of conducting 
it, and the result usually corresponds to the care 
and skill shown iu mauagiug tho details. Yet it 
often happens, even to the most intelligent farm¬ 
ers, and in spite of their vigilant efforts, that a 
single oversight, or omission, in a scries of trials, 
defeats the expected result. A striking illustra¬ 
tion of this appears iu the experiments made by 
Dr. Also!', laHt season, in Connecticut. 
Tins series of trials was carefully and elabo¬ 
rately arranged on sound principles, and ought 
to have given very clear and instructive results. 
Had it been successful, it would have doubtless 
thrown much light on the Block bridge Theory, 
and on the general subject of manuring. But, 
from some cause or other, it is found impossible, 
on examining the report, to reconcile tho several 
produots witli each other, or with the fertilizers 
used. Even Prof. Atwater, who is certainly a 
competent judge, admits that the several prod¬ 
ucts aro conflicting, and that he ’ 1 cannot ex- 
