The workingman's advocate. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1864-1877, 1872-03-09

amazement and terror He instantly APP
preached and looked at the part of tree
! which had fixed their attention. His sur
/ prise equaled theirs on seeing toad about
the size Of an egg incrusted in a manner III
the tree at the distance Of four inches from
the diameter, and fifteen from the root. II
was cut and mangled by the axe, but still
moved. He drew it with difficulty from
/ its abode, or rather prison, which 1t hlle1
so completely that it seemed to have been
compressed. He placed it on the grass il
I appeared old, thin, languishing, decrepit
He afterward examined the tree with the
! greatest care to discover how it had glided
/ in; but the tree was perfectly whole and
sound.
I These facts, but particularly the paper of
\ vi. Guettard, induced nj. Herrisan to make
| experiments calculated to ascertain their
certainty. In February, 177l, he inclosed
three live toads in an many cases Of plaster
and shut thenn mn in dark box. which ha
also covered with thick coating OF plaster
In April, 1774, having removed the plaster,
he opened the box and found the cases
whole On breaking the cases he discovered
that two Of the toads were alive, but the
third had died a martyr to scientific investi-
CATION. The defunct toad was larger than
the others. and had been more compressed
In the case A careful examination of this
experiment convinced those who had wit
messed il that the animals were 50 inclosed
that they could have no possible communi-
cation with the external air, and must have
existed during this lapse Of time without
the least nourishment The Academy pre-
vailed IN Nj. Herlssaeh TO repeat the expert
ment He inclosedakgain the TO surviving
toads. and placed the bck in th6hands Of tie
secretary. that the academy might open it
whenever they should think proper. But
this celebrated naturalist was too deeply in-
teri s;ed in the subject to be satisfied with q
single experiment he made therefore, the
tao following First, in April Of the same
year he placed two live toads in basin Of
plaster, which he covered with plate Of
glass that he might observe them frequent
ly In the following month he presented
the apparatus to the Academy. One Of the
toads was still living the other had given
up the ghost on the preceding night Sec
undly. ON the same date he inclosed another
toad IN glass bottle which he buried in the
sand. that II might have no communi-
cation with the external air. This animal,
which he presented to the academy at the
same time rs the other, was perfectly well,
and even cruaked whenever the bottle III
which II was confined was shaken. It'll t.
h. lamented that the death Of nj. Herissan
put stop 10 Il ese experiments, so interest
ing to savants. if not to toads.
The power which these animals appear ID
possess of sustaining abstinence for so long
time. may result from a very slow diges-
tion. and perhaps from the singular nourlsh
ment which they derive from themselves.
NJ Grignon observes that this animal sheds
its skin several times in the course If a year
and that it always swallows it. He has
known, he says, large toad to shed its skin
SIX times IN one winter In short, those
which may b. supposed from the facts we
have related, 10 have existed mary years
without nourishment, have been in total in
action, in suspension If life, and i'll tenn
perature that has admitted of no dissolu-
ton; So that 1t was not necessary to supply
any loss, the humidity Of the surrounding
matter preserving that of the animal, which
needed only the component parts to be kept
in state Of moisture to preserve it from de-
struction.
But toads are not the only animals which
have the power If living for a considerable
time without nourishment and communi-
cation with the external air. The instances
Of the oysters and dactyles mentioned at the
beginning Of this article may be advanced
in proof of it and there are other ex-
amples.
Two living worms were found i'll Spain, iu
the middle of a block Of marble which \
sculptor was carving into lion for the royal
family. These worms occupied two small
cavities, in which there was no inlet that
could possibly admit the air. They subsist-
ed probably on the marble, as they were Of
the same color. This, fact was verified BY
Captain Ulloa. famous Spaniard, who ac-
companied the eFrenchAcademicians in their
voyage to Peru for the purpose Of ascertain
ing the figure Of the earth. He asserts that
he saw these worms. A beetle of the species
called Capricorn was found in a piece Of
wood in the hold Of a ship at Plymouth. we
read in the Affnches de Province, June,
l112, that an adder was found alive in the
center Of block Of marble thirty feet III
diameter. 1t was folded nine times round
in a spiral line it was incapable If sup
porting air, and died few moments after.
Upon examining the stone, not the smallest
trace was 10 be found by which It could have
glided in or received air.
Nilsson, in his Travels through Italy, men
tions craw fish that was found alive ia the
midst Of a mass of marble in the environs OF
Tivoh. NJ. Peysonnel, kings physician at
Guadaloupe, having ordered pit to be dug
at the back Of his house, was told by the
workmen that live frogs were found by them
in beds Of petrifaction. M. Personnel,
suspecting some deceit, descended into the
pit, dug the bed Of rock and petrifaction, and
drew out green frogs, which were alive and
exactly similar to what we see every day.
-. 4.
mails live in such a state of captivity, it Is
equally difficult to account for their getting
into durance vile. Various theories have
been advanced, but none of them so salts
factory but the savants have still to dis
cover the mystery connected with those
Prisoners Of Nature
REMEDY FOR PAINFUL WOUNDS. The
Country Gentleman" says Take a pan
! or shovel with burning Goals and sprinkle
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