The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1897-09-18


excitement. "Oh, lizard, lizard!" he
cried, shaking all over from his nose
to his tail. "Just look at me! I'm
getting legsl"
1t was true. There they we're,
still very small AID weak, but really
legs. The lizard and the tadpole
had been too busy talking of how
they could make them grow to notice
that they were already budding.
They were still more excited when,
soon afterward, they saw near the
front part of the tadpole's body two
more little buds; and the lizard was
sure these would prove to be wings.
1t was terrible blow to them when
they found they were not wings at
all, but legs.
snow it's all overp cried the tad
pole in despair. " 1t was bad enough
to not have wings; but now that Pm
getting legs this way, there's no
knowing where it'll end"
The lizard, too, was almost help
less for awhile, until she suddenly
remembered how a crayfish she had
known had lost one of its claws in
fight and it hard hardly hurt it at all;
and she suggested that she might
pull the two front lege off. The tad
pole was very willing; but at the first
twitch he cried out, "Ouch! that
hurtsl" SO the lizard had to stop. She
could not but feel, however. that
something might have been done if
the tadpole had not been such
coward.
But worse was to follow. One
morning before the lizard was up,
the tadpole came wriggling over to
the door of her house. Lizard liz
ard Come out h.re!" he cried; and,
as soon as she appeared, he breath
lessly begged her to get piece of
eel-grass and measure his tail. five
been afraid it was shrinking for some
Time" he said "And now I'm al
most sure. And I've been feeling
50 strangely, too Sometimes ] feel
as though | must have air; and / get
up on a stone, so that | am almost
out of the water, and only then do l
feel comfortable"
Hastily the lizard measured the
tadpole's tale; and then they sat
staring at each other III silent conster
nation. 1t was almost gone!
Still, the lizard would not give up
all hope. She knew of a wise old
crayfsh, who lived further down the
stream; and, after bidding the tad
pole stay where he was until she re-
turned, she fastened away to beg
the old crayfish to come and look at
the tadpole and give his advice.
In very little while she was back
again bringing the old crayfish with
her. He came crawling along, look
ing both ways at once with his pop
eyes, and twiddling his feelers; but
the moment he came to where the
tadpole was he stopped short in sur
prise. "Why, this is no sick tadpolep
he cried. Then he added, address
ing the tadpole: "Why are you here?
Why aren't you out in the swamp,
singing with all the rest af them?
Don't you know you're frog?"
"A frog!" cried the lizard; but the
young tadpole-frog leaped clear out
of the brook, with joyous cry. "a
frogl" he shouted. "a frog Why,
that's better than being birdl o
little lizard, if that is true, | must
say good-by. Hey for the wide,
green swamps, and the loud frog
choruses under thelight of the moon.
Good-by, little friend Good-by
Think OF me sometimes when you
hear me singing far away
So the frog went away to join his
brothers.
1t was lonely for the little lizard
after the frog was gone, but she CON-
forted herself by thinking how
happy he must be. And often, at
twilight, she listened to the choruses
of the frogs over in the swamp, and
wondered if the one who sang SC
much louder and deeper than all the
rest was the little tadpole who had
tried so hard to be bird. "Aftei
all" she said to herself, there are
more ways of singing than one. >
| Outlook