Waterbury Democrat., 1901-08-24
SOME QUEER THINGS.
Recent Occurrences That Help to Arouse Wonder Frogs and
 Toads Rained Down.

A dispatch from Minneapolis relates that during a heavy thunder storm. recently, the clouds suddenly assumed 2 cyclonic shape and turned loose on the city huge green mass.'' A few minutes after this mass had struck the earth the dispatch continues, those who yentured out were astonished to find countless toads and frogs strewn several inches deep over an area of more than four blocks.
 So thick were the frogs and toads that in some localities it was impossi- Die to walk on the sidewalks. The Great Northern express train to .he coast was delayed fifteen minutes, the rails beneath becoming so slippery that the rails would not hold. On the roof of an elevator and in the gut ters of several buildings the frogs were found in large numbers, indicat- ing beyond a doubt that they came from the clouds.
 Although most persons would say on first thought that this story should be laid away with the perennial sea serpent reports from New Jersey, it is far from certain that the Minneapolis dispatch is false.
 On December 5, 1863, Porte in the island of Skye had twelve and one half inches of rain in thirteen hours When the fall was over thousands of water bugs, newts and similar inhab- itants of ponds were found scattered over the countryside, though to the credit of the British Isles be it said no snakes were observed
 At Joyeuse in France, when a record breaking rain of thirty one inches fell within twenty-four hours, small fish were found in multitudes on the hiH- sides. At Seawaite in Borrowdale, England, on November 25. 1S45, small fish of many varieties fell with a ter rittic downfall of rain that lasted for over day.
 In the hills above Bombay, India. lizards, snakes, frogs, scorpions and many varieties of reptiles and in- sects have been reported as falling from time to time in furious rain storms. Moreover the Bible records rain of lizards, snakes, frogs and other living creatures during the troubles between Pharoah and the children of Israel in Egypt.
 But even more remarkable freaks of rain are noted in weather journals. Numerous authenticated incidents of red rain, believed at the time to have been showers of blood, have been re- ported. In France and Germany in 11S1, at Genoa in 1744, at Naples i'll 1913, and near Rome in 1870, occurred some of the most noted instances. Yel- low rains have been several times ob- served in the United States. the most noticeable storm of the kind being at Lynchburg, Va, in March, 1879. Snow fell from clear sky to a depth of nearly an inch at Bloomfield, IL on March 15, 1885, and deep deposits of red snow have been found in Green land. Tornadoes have been known in many instances to suck up the con- tents of wells, tanks and even large ponds, carrying them miles before re leasing them.
 In the case of Minneapolis, it seems reasonable to believe that small 'twister" accompanied the storm of Tuesday evening. In passing over the marshes at the endge of the city it may have picked up number of frogs and toads as it passed, dropping them afterward within the city limits.
 Stranger things than this are often seen in hot weather by men who re- coil with horror from recording the discovery of sea serpent. It there fore is becoming to the great Ameri- can republic to think a second time before condemning all men in Minne- apolis as liars Chicago Inter Ocean.