The Worcester spy. [volume] (Worcester, Mass.) 1898-1904, 1899-07-21
THE COMMON TOAD.
Dr. Hodge Finds Much in This Most De-
tested Animal.

DR.. Hodge spoke on 1.-THE common
toad" and said in substance: Biology
is defined as the science Of living things
in Its broader sense. 1t was disoov-
cred only at the beginning of this cen.
fury. The biology Of plant or an
animal is all the relations Of its species
to the world. Sum up the entire work
that an individual Of a species is able
to do in it's life, and multiply 1t by
tie whole number Of individuals, and
you have force in nature to which
Niagara power is nothing.
knowledge about these forces has a
Value which is proportionate to its
greatness. The only adequate study
along this line Of biology was done by
Darwin ON the earth-worm.
Any child can make discoveries in this
field of biology, which will increase the
sum of worlds knowledge. Only in
proportion to the human value is the
ethical principles Of human society de-
veloped We shall take up today the
study Of the ugliest, most common and
most useful of the vertebrates, the gar
den toad
The biology of the toad means all the
csthetic, all the ethical and all economic
relations that are to DO found in its
life. The esthetic relations of the toad
the most beautiful jewel in the world
The trilling of the toads In the spring
is the SWEETEST sound in nature. The
most beautiful eye and voice are no
mean esthetie relations. The ethical
values Of this animal are something we
cannot oversstimate Having the
children all over the land be kind to
these little animals would develope an
ethical principle.
Toads gather in the early spring, after
their period Of dormance, in the sur
race waters Of the districts. Evenings
IN the spring yov may hear the rustic
OF the dry gross and leaves as the
toads are finoiie their way to the pond.
and you hear the low trill Of the male:
when the water is reached, then begins
lthe loud tril1 which can be heard for a
ienile on a still night. Their work in
tne water is of short duration, deposit
ing their eggs within a day. If II
should turn cold, they bury themselves
an me grass until 1t gets warm, When
the eggs are laid, they hop back 10 the
gardens. The number Of eggs a species
produces tells how long it will be be-
Tore we shall have enough of that spe-
cies in the world. One toad will law
about 1000 to 1000 eggs. SO we can
have thousand-fold increase in a
year.
In few days the eggs hatch into lit
zig plaek tad-poles. AT first they eat
the jelly about the egg and then they
begin to eat the slime, the bacteria
and PROTOCOL which form Oh the bot
tom of streams, and thus preventing
ttbe overgrowth Of shines Of fnalarias
In the surface. They increase rapidly
and in June they begin to bud out the
legs, and about the goth Of June the
little toads begin coming out on the
land where the little fellows begin at
once to eat the insects which are 1ust
patching. It would be interesting to
see what would happen IL all the toads
were removed from any district. we
should probably be overcome by bugs
Three distinct studies on the toad
were made at one time and from almost
the same point Of view. Here they are:
Airchlands bulletin No. AZ, aThe eco
non1io value of the toad" "The life
history Of the toad" by Prof. Gage
of Cornell and THE biology of the
{cao. by myself. DR.. Cages and my
book are dramatically opposed. DR..
Cages book is very well arranged.
or the two toads in the lecture room.
lpne are 81 flies and the other Sc elm
beetles in the hour.