Idaho semi-weekly world. [volume] (Idaho City, Idaho Territory) 1875-1908, 1890-03-11
.arA,,ry or ANIMALS.
conditions II Can lie sus-

rsder ''aded for Long Time.
faui' "ather latent vitality, are af-
~ OF Or, seeds, which may be kept for
iorasu ,S.gtbout showing action, but are
|ea, n,oable Of being recalled to the ex-
T'c'P ~ the functions OF l.fc. Other In
erclss :" arc afforded by the lower organ
stsnoe '.bIcb will remain dry and sterile
ispis ,oanIte periods, to be brought into
,oa activity at any time by supplying
~ AZ h degree Of moisture ana warmth.
iDe aus -, to higher forms OF life, the
GOMEZ, ,sbopomena are usually manifested
ssme pn,s one Of the normal conditions
ID ms, sose life--thc agnpha or chrysatt'
o. We 4 characterized by the exhibition
saM external appearance Of death.
q s,s This stage the vital processes are
pui'~ ased down till only enough are in
guy n maintain merely vegetative
sns ',ence; yet the insect is capable OF
es 's, notions when subjected to shock
hsn .ossure. The duration OF this APP
o. death varies according to the
Pa'sa and to external conditions.
, sso.e are species that require two years
i ,.onhatiop before going through their
~a,nornhosis. Others pass to the per-
a'.' in few days. Butterflies de-
.ad certain degree OF heat, below
n, they viii not issue. The opening
WV, ,he cbrysalis takes place naturally
those atmospheric conditions are
W.T. 'i;,ad n the season is late, the
,D.ah;no il also late. Hence we can
.slonc the duration Of the chrysalis
tste Indefinitely by properly adjust
inr the temperature, delaying to that
~ wont the metamorphosis of the i'm
e.isoned mummy into the free and
fFineed insect Reaumur, by putting
,sresalides in an ice-box. was able to
,.an +bem alive and retard their devel-
nnment several years. Going higher up
!. tho animal series-eggs, which are
,rsocous to the seeds of plants, present
,,omarkable example of retarded life.
ANA NJ the most interesting features
.hout them is the independence of their
Vitality, which persists even when the
,rdividual that has produced them, and
yitbin whose organism they are still
contained, has ceased to live. This fact
b,s been recognized in pisciculture,
rhere artificial fecun iation has been
successful with eggs taken from dead
ssb The persistence of life in frogs is
very long Spallanzani preserved some
,-ogs in a mass of snow for two wears.
They became dry, stiff, and almost fria-
be but a gradual heat brought them
hack to life. Toads have been shut up
in blocks of plaster, aad then, having
been deprived Of all air except what
NAV penetrate through the material,
and Of all sources of food, resuscitated
several years afterward. This question
presents one of the most curious prob
lens that biological science has been
called on toexplain. The longevity and
vital resistance of toads are surprising.
Besides the experiments we have cited.
nature sometimes presents some already
made, and vastly more astonishing.
Toads are said to have been found in
rocks Such cases are rare, but it
would be as unreasonable to doubt
them as to believe in some of the
miraculous explanations that have been
made of the matter. The phenomenon
is marvellous. it is true, but it is sup
ported by evidence that we are not able
tocontest; and skeptlcism, which is in
compatible with sci nce, will have to
disappear if rigorous observation shall
confirm it. The toad was observed. in
one case, in the stoI itself, and before
recovering from its long lethargy it had
notmade any motion. One of these toads
vas presented to an academy. with the
stone which had served it as coffin or
habitatiOn, and it was ascertained that
the cavity seemed to correspond exactly
whit dimensions and form of the an
mal. 1t is remarkable that these toad
stones are very hard and not at all por-
Gus, and show no signs of fissure The
mind, completely batfled in the presence
q the fact, is equally embarrassed to
explain how the toad could live in it's
Singular prison and how it became shut
upthere. NJ. Charles Richet had occa-
Sion to study this question some months
ago and came to the conclusion that the
lact was real, observing that even if, in
me actual condition of science, certain
Phenomena were still inexplicable, we
were not warranted in denying their ex-
s'ence for new discoveries might at any
ume furnish an explanation of them.
lae true may sometimes not be proba-
DE- But science takes accounting of
me truth, not Of the probability
translated for Popular Science Monthly
nom La Monde de la Science ct de L
Indue+,;