Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1889-09-20
AN ANTEDIluVIAN FROG.
Found SoHdly Embedded in a Bank Of
Clay-Developins His Frosship.

Found Solidly Embedded in a Bank Of
Clay-Developing His Frosship.
In the Plenty Valley, Victoria, some time
n the early '70s a road party ware making
deep cutting through some clay beds TO i'm
prove local traffic facilities. The clay bed
was tertiary formation; it was hard and of
yellow color. On the clay bank gum trees,
some hundreds Of years old, were growing.
When about thirty feet below the surface a
block of this clay in falling broke into two
pieces, out Of which tumbled little frog,
with body about two and one half inches long
and one and a quarter inches wide. He
seemed blind and sleepy, though showing
every evidence of Life; he was apparently as
strong as any other frog Of the same size; he
was in no way thin; in fact, seemed to be u
well nurtured and properly cared for frog.
The block Of clay was reduced in size, and
the frog, with the two pieces which formed
the dwelling was sent to the Neurological
museum, Melbourne Mr.. Newberry, the
chief of that institution, examined him very
closely and found that all the natural orifices
Of the body had closed completely; in fact,
there was Of them not trace remaining. In
color the frog was dirty yellow, such as the
clay without any variation of tinge. Mr..
Newberry sent this creature for Identification
to Frederick Mccoy, F. r. S., professor of
natural sciences, Melbourne unworthy. Pro
fessor Mccoy identified him as member of
a well known species whose habits were, in
time of trouble, such as drought or cold, to
bury themselves in the earth and remain
there until the condition of things was more
to their liking. Members of the species men
toned, however, were yellow color notified
with brown
After the identification the creature was
again returned to Mr. Newberry. This gen
tieman determined to see if he could by some
natural process educate the sleepy specimen
into a more vigorous and better understand
ing of his duties as live frog He was then
doniciled in a small fernery in the museum,
and it was decided to give him bath every
morning, proceeding which froggy seemed
strongly to object to, though he swan vigor-
Dusty while in the water When put back
into bis clay cavity he wriggled himself about
until he found the old groove folded himself
up and seemed contented This cavity might
be described as fitting him where it touched
him-that is to say, though touching him all
over the more prominent parts of the body,
the clay was not nodded into the hollows
formed by the folding Of his limbs. After a
short while the clay bed was taken from him
and he was put among the ferns on the mold,
into which he rapidly sank stern first by a
peculiar motion of his hind legs.
For his morning bath he had to be dug up
daily, then back he would go again into Sc
clusion. In little while two patches Of dust
were:noticed on his nose These were exam
ined by magnifying glass, and it was found
that In the center of each was an infinitely
minute hole just where the nostrils should be.
After enforced bathing and exercise daily for
about six weeks the duh yellow skin covering
him began to cone of IL small patches; it
eventually fell OF like the slough OF a snake,
revealing him as Professor Mccoy said ne
should be, a nice looking notified brown and
yellow frog, with bright eyes, mouth, nos
trils, etc. After bis skin came off he began
to like the water, would jump into it, then
after a swim SIT underneath the ferns; he
gradually showed liking to blink in the sun
and generally deported himself in the manner
of well conducted frog, though he was never |
seen to take any food.
One day the door of the fernery was left /
OPEN whether it was that the Unsuitable de- I
sire for sensation pervading our modern civ
iization affected him SO that he desired to /
see how the world had wagged since ages I
agope he had babe it good-by, whether it was /
for the purpose of examining other objects of .
interest in the museum, or that he stepped /
out for refreshments, or with a desire to go /
a-wooing, history he's nos been Informed; at /
all events, instead of meeting the lilly white /
duck" of the fable, he came in contact with .
the museum cat, who was proving around, /
and, before an attendant looking on could |
interfere, he was seized by the cat, who, with .
him in her mouth, dashed through an open |
window into shrubhery hard by and no |
trace Of froggv was ever again to be found
Engineering.