By the Roadside

Front matter

Mother Nature Series By the Roadside

Row, Peterson and Company Evanston, Illinois New York Philadelphia San Francisco

Copyright, 1928 Row, Peterson and Company Fifth Printing

How the Toad Gets a Drink of Water

One summer a large fat toad lived in our back yard. We children had named him Hoppy Hop.

Every evening about sunset the toad came to the steps of the back porch. Here he sat for a long time. He blinked and blinked his big bright eyes. He looked very wise.

What do you think he was doing? He was waiting to catch something good to eat. He was getting his supper. For supper he had moths, flies, gnats, bugs, and mosquitoes.

That summer it was very hot. It did not rain for a long time. The grass died, and the earth was hard and dry. Hoppy Hop did not look so big and fat as when we first saw him. Yet he seemed to catch as many flies as ever.

Mother and Sister Mary talked about Hoppy Hop. Sister Mary said, "This hot weather is too much for that toad. I think he looks thinner every day."

"Yes," said Mother, "he is not so big and fat as he used to be. Maybe he is thirsty. It hasn't rained for a long time. I wonder whether he is getting enough water to drink."

Little Billy heard his Mother and Mary talking about the toad. He began to feel very sorry for poor Hoppy Hop.

"I will give Hoppy Hop some fresh cool water," Billy said. So he got one of his baby sister's little toy dishes and filled it with cool water.

The dish was very small. Billy thought it was just the right size for the little toad. He put the little dish near the back steps. "Now Hoppy Hop can have a good drink," he said.

Before long the toad hopped up. Billy watched him, hoping to see him drink the water. The toad hopped very close to the little dish and sat there. But he did not take a drink.

Little Billy was sorry that Hoppy Hop did not drink the water. After a while Billy became tired of waiting.

"Maybe he is afraid of me. I'll go away a little while. He may drink the water after I have gone," said Billy, and he went into the house.

By and by Billy came out again to see what Hoppy Hop was doing. The toad was still sitting by the doorstep, blinking his big bright eyes. But he had not drunk any of the water.

After that Billy put water into the little dish two or three nights, but Hoppy Hop never drank any of it. Every day he seemed to get thinner and thinner.

On Friday afternoon Uncle Harry came to see Billy's Mother. Uncle Harry said he could stay two weeks. Billy was glad of that.

As you may suppose, Billy soon told Uncle Harry all about Hoppy Hop. "He used to be the biggest, fattest toad you ever saw," he said, "but now he looks lean and skinny. I'll show him to you tonight."

"All right," said Uncle Harry, "maybe we can find out what is wrong."

At night, when the family were all sitting on the porch, out from his sleeping place came Hoppy Hop.

"See, there he comes now; look at him," said Billy to his uncle.

"He does look bad," said Uncle Harry. "Has it rained here lately? I think he must need a drink."

"Oh, no," said Billy, "he doesn't like water. I filled a little dish for him, and he wouldn't drink any."

"Let me see the dish you gave him," said Uncle Harry.

Billy ran and got the little dish. When Uncle Harry saw it, he put his head back and laughed.

"Did you ever see a toad drink?" asked Uncle Harry.

"No," said Billy, "I've never seen a toad drink. I watched and watched, but I don't think Hoppy Hop has ever taken any water out of the dish."

"Do you know how a toad drinks water?" asked Uncle Harry.

"No, I've never seen a toad drink," said Billy. "How does he do it?"

Instead of answering Billy, Uncle Harry went into the house. When he came back, he had a pie pan in one hand, and a pitcher of water in the other. He put the pan down on the ground, and filled it with water. Then he said, "I shall show you how a toad drinks water. Let us go and sit on that bench and watch Hoppy Hop."

As soon as Uncle Harry and Billy had left the pan, the toad began hopping toward it. He hopped right into the middle of the pan. He spread out his legs in the water and lay there as though he were dead.

For a minute or two, Billy watched with wide eyes. Then he turned to Uncle Harry and said softly, "He isn't drinking a bit. Why doesn't he drink?"

"But he is drinking," said Uncle Harry. "That's the way he drinks. A toad does not drink with his mouth as you and I and most other animals do. Hoppy Hop can't use water except as it soaks through his skin. That's the way he drinks water. To see him lying there so quiet, you would not think he is just as happy as a toad can be."

"I am so glad you came, Uncle," said Billy. "I might have let Hoppy Hop die of thirst, for I did not know how a toad drinks. I'll keep Hoppy Hop's pan full of water all the time until it rains."

The Rainbow

Two little clouds one summer's day, Went flying through the sky; They went so fast they bumped their heads, And both began to cry.

Old Father Sun looked out and said: "Oh! never mind, my dears, I'll send my little fairy folk To dry your falling tears."

One fairy came in violet, And one in indigo; In blue, green, orange, red— They made a pretty row.

They wiped the cloud tears all away, And then from out the sky, Upon a line the sunbeams made— They hung their gowns to dry.

>>—Lizzie Hadley

Hoppy Hop's Supper

One evening Billy and Uncle Harry were sitting on the garden bench. They were watching Hoppy Hop. It was after supper, but it was not yet dark. Hoppy Hop was sitting very still. Some flies were buzzing about near him, but he did not seem to see them.

"I don't see why Hoppy doesn't catch some of those flies for his supper," said Billy to his uncle.

Uncle Harry looked at Billy, smiled, and said, "I'm afraid you have not been seeing what he is doing."

"No," said Billy, "I've been watching him for a long time. He hasn't even moved his head."

"He doesn't have to," said Uncle Harry. "The flies are buzzing so near him he can catch them without moving."

"But, Uncle Harry, how can he catch flies without moving his head a little?" asked Billy.

"He catches them with his tongue," said Uncle Harry. "His tongue isn't fastened at the back of his mouth like yours. It is fastened to the front."

Then Uncle Harry pulled his knife out of his pocket.

"Hoppy Hop's tongue folds back into his mouth just the way my knife blade shuts back into the handle," he said. "But he can move it much faster than I can open and shut my knife. He can flip it out of his mouth and back again almost as quickly as you can wink your eye. Didn't you see it then?"

Billy looked puzzled. "Yes," he said, "I did see a little pink thing shoot out from his mouth. But I don't see how he can catch flies with that. How does he catch hold of the fly?'

"His tongue is sticky," said Uncle Harry. "It catches the fly just as sticky fly paper does. As soon as Hoppy gets the fly on his tongue he swallows it. It has no time to try to get away."

Just then the toad gave a little jump, but the next minute he was sitting as still as ever.

"Why did Hoppy Hop jump then?" asked Billy.

"He saw a fly that was too far away for his tongue to reach," said Uncle Harry. "He jumped just as a ball player does to catch a high ball. He can reach insects two inches away with his tongue. If they are farther away than that, he has to jump for them."

"Oh, look!" cried Billy. "What do you suppose is the matter with him?"

Hoppy Hop did look as though something were the matter. His bright eyes were not shining on top of his head. They were sunk in, and his eyelids were closed. Just then his eyes popped up again. But the next minute they were sunk in and closed again.

Two or three times the toad's eyes popped up and back. Then Hoppy Hop opened his mouth, and out dropped a big beetle. It had long sharp pinchers.

Uncle Harry laughed. "Hoppy Hop took too big a mouthful that time," he said. "When you saw him he was trying to swallow that beetle. A toad's eyes are just above the roof of his mouth. When he shuts them, they press down on the roof of his mouth. They help him to swallow a big mouthful.

"They didn't help him to swallow this big mouthful," said Billy.

"Oh, yes, they did," answered Uncle Harry. "He swallowed it. But it was alive, you see. Toads eat only things that are alive. And, when the beetle found itself inside Hoppy Hop's body, it used those big pinchers to pinch him. Hoppy Hop was glad to let it out."

"You ought to have seen Hoppy Hop last night," said Billy. "He tried to eat a big earthworm. When I saw him the worm was half in his mouth and half out. Hoppy Hop was pushing it in with his front feet, just as if they were hands. He pushed and pushed, but the worm wriggled and pulled. At last it got away."

"Toads can eat small earthworms," said Uncle Harry. "But they can't hold on to the big ones very well. You see, toads haven't any teeth."

Just then Billy's mother called. It was almost dark. Lightning bugs were beginning to fly about the garden.

So Uncle Harry and Billy started for the house. Just before they went in, Billy turned for one more look at Hoppy Hop. "Oh, Uncle Harry," he shouted, "Hoppy just swallowed a lightning bug. I saw his tongue run out and catch it."

Busy Bee

"Deary me," cried a busy bee, What curious sights in town we see! Children who've not tasted honey; Big folks selling flowers for money; Deary me!" cried the busy bee, "The country is the place for me." >>—Selected

The Toads That Took a Trip

One spring Mrs. Gray planted a small garden of her own. She liked lettuce so well that she planned to grow a great deal of it. She said that she would put in some seed every two or three weeks.

Soon the lettuce began to come up. The leaves were tender and green. Every time Mrs. Gray went to the

garden, she looked to see how the lettuce was growing. The spring rains watered it, and the little plants grew very fast. Mrs. Gray was happy. She thought she would soon have tender young lettuce for the table.

One morning Mrs. Gray went out to her garden to see whether the lettuce was large enough to cut. But instead of her thick bed of green lettuce she found only a few plants growing here and there. She was very sorry that her little lettuce plants were almost all gone. She stooped down and looked

carefully at the plants that were left. Then she saw that something had been eating her lettuce.

That evening she said to Mr. Gray, "Something has eaten almost all of my tender young lettuce."

"I wonder what could have done it," said Mr. Gray. "I will go to the garden and see whether I can tell."

When Mr. Gray came back into the house, he said, "I know what it was. Some slugs have been getting your lettuce."

"But I did not see any slugs," said Mrs. Gray.

"Oh, no," replied Mr. Gray. "Slugs eat young plants at night, and then before daylight comes they hide."

"What can I do to keep the slugs away from my lettuce bed?" asked Mrs. Gray.

"Toads will eat the slugs. Toads are good friends to have in the garden, because they eat up insects that destroy our vegetables," replied Mr. Gray.

"But there are no toads in our garden," said Mrs. Gray.

"That is true," said Mr. Gray. "But while John and Frank are visiting Grandmother, they could get you some toads from her garden. John's last letter says they found a great many toads there. The boys could catch some and send them to you."

That night Mrs. Gray wrote to John and Frank, asking them to send her some toads as soon as they could.

The boys laughed when they had read their mother's letter. They thought it would be great fun to send her some toads for her garden.

"But how can we send the toads?" asked Frank.

"Oh, we can put them into a big box, with some earth and send them by express," said John.

"Why should we put dirt into the box?" asked Frank.

"That is to keep the toads damp and cool," said John. "Toads do not like much heat. If they are kept warm very long, they die."

"Let's catch the toads now," said Frank eagerly.

John laughed. "Oh, no, you wouldn't find many toads in the daytime. They do not stay out in the bright sunshine. They hide under stones or boards or big leaves and sleep nearly all day. Wait until this evening. Then all the toads will come out, and we can catch some."

That evening about sunset, just as John had said, the toads came hopping out from their cool beds. Their eyes were very bright. They were looking for their supper.

John and Frank got a wooden box and put a lot of cool, moist earth into it. Then they caught a few toads and

put them into the box. But the toads hopped out as fast as they were put in.

"This will never do," said John. "We must make a cover for the box to keep the toads inside." So they found a piece of wire netting to put over the top of the box.

Then John and Frank began to catch the toads again and to put them into the box. Each time they put a toad into the box, they put the wire netting over the top to keep the toads from hopping out. The boys handled the toads very gently, because they did not want to hurt their little brown friends. They were not afraid of the toads. They knew that the toads could not hurt them in any way, nor make warts on their hands.

It took a long time to catch the toads. They hopped away from John and Frank as fast as they could. By and by it was so dark the boys could not see. They had to get a lantern from Grandmother. Then it was not so hard to find the toads. They hopped out into the light.

At last the boys had caught twenty toads and put them into the box of earth. Then they nailed the wire netting down so that the toads could not get away. The next morning John and Frank sent the box to their mother.

When the expressman drove up to Mrs. Gray's house, she was looking for him: "I have a box for you," he said.

"Oh, yes, that's the box of toads that I asked John and Frank to send me," said Mrs. Gray.

Mrs. Gray peeped through the wire netting to see how many toads were in the box. Imagine her surprise when she saw only two toads.

"I wonder how all those toads got away," said Mrs. Gray. "I know there were more in this big box. These two toads are all that are left. They look so dusty and tired I am going to pour some water on them to wash them off before I put them in the garden. I am sorry that the other toads got away."

Mrs. Gray poured some water into the box of dirt. Then something happened that surprised her very much. The earth in the box began to crack and move. Out of the earth came the toads. Mrs. Gray counted them. There were twenty toads. All but two had been down in the earth where it was damp.

The toads blinked their bright eyes and made soft noises. Maybe they were saying, "Thank you for the cool water."

Mrs. Gray planted more lettuce seed every three weeks and had good lettuce all summer.

When John and Frank came home from their visit, they enjoyed watching the toads help their mother.

The Frog's Good-bye

Good-bye, little children, I'm going away, In my snug little home all winter to stay. I seldom get up, once I'm tucked in my bed. And as it grows colder I cover my head.

I sleep very quietly all winter through, And really enjoy it; there's nothing to do— The flies are all gone, so there's nothing to eat, And I take this time to enjoy a good sleep.

My bed is a nice little hole in the ground, Where snug as a bug in the winter I'm found. You might think long fasting would make me grow thin, But no! I stay plump as when I go in.

And now, little children, good-bye one and all, Some warm day next spring I shall give you a call; I'm quite sure to know when to get out of bed— When I feel the warm sun shining down on my head. >>—Selected

The Life of a Toad

Toads live in shady woods and in gardens all summer. They are among the best helpers those who make gardens have. They eat all kinds of garden insects. In three months one toad will eat ten thousand insects.

When fall days come, toads begin to grow sleepy. They do not feel like hopping about. They want to go to bed. So they creep into holes in the rocks or bury themselves in the ground. There they sleep all winter. They may freeze solid, but that does not kill them.

Very early in the spring the toads come out of their winter beds. As soon as they are out, they start for a pond or a quiet stream. They are going to the water to lay their eggs.

Early in the spring you can hear toads singing in the ponds. Sometimes you can see them, too. They sit in the shallow water with their heads out. When they sing, their throats puff out big and round like half marbles.

Perhaps you can find some toads' eggs when spring comes. They are in long curly strings. These strings are wrapped around the grass and weeds under the water. They look like long strings of beads covered with jelly.

Soon the eggs hatch, and out come tiny black tadpoles. The pond is full of them. They do not look at all like toads. They have no legs at all. They have only round black heads with wriggling little black tails behind them.

The tadpoles feed on the green slime that they find on the water. They have no teeth, but they have hard little jaws. With these jaws they scrape the slime from the rocks that are in the water and from the stems of plants that grow there. Tadpoles help to keep the water clean. The young tadpoles stay under the water all the time. They can breathe under the water just as fish do.

By and by two little round knobs grow out near the tadpole's tail. Then five toes grow from each of these knobs. The knobs become longer and soon the tadpole has two hind legs.

The tadpole's legs grow longer. Then two front legs grow. He is fast changing into a little toad.

Now the tadpole does not stay under the water all the time. He begins to live more as a grown toad lives. Toads live on land and breathe out of water. They breathe as other land animals do. So now the tadpole has to come to the top of the pond and put his mouth above the water to breathe.

The tadpole's tail has grown shorter and shorter until at last it is all gone. His legs are grown. The little tadpole has changed into a toad. He is very tiny, no bigger than a cricket. You could hold ten of these little toads in your hand at once if you could keep them from hopping out.

Now the little toads leave the pond. They come out only at night, for they do not like the heat of the sun. They set out to find a garden or a shady place for a home. And they still like wet places. When the day is hot and dry, the toads hide under leaves or stones. If a rain comes, they come out at once. Sometimes so many of them come out it looks as though it had rained toads.

The young toads grow very fast. Their old skins get too small and have to be cast off. A growing toad may shed its skin every month. An old toad sheds his skin four times a year.

When a toad is about to shed his skin, he humps up his back and bends his head down. The skin splits in two or three places. Then the toad opens his mouth very wide. He catches a bit of the skin in his mouth and then shuts his mouth. He begins to suck the skin into his mouth. The skin slips off his back. The skin on his front legs turns wrong side out and comes off like gloves. The toad keeps sucking it into his mouth.

Soon the toad swallows all his old skin. He has a fresh new suit now that is big enough for him. But by and by that will be too small, and he will pull it off in the same way.

Not very many of the little toads grow up to be big toads. A great many of them get killed. Hens and ducks and baby snakes catch them when they are little. Even when they grow big, snakes and owls and hawks eat them. Toads cannot hop fast

enough to get away from everything that tries to catch them. They have no teeth with which to fight.

But toads have two things that save the lives of many of them. The color and roughness of a toad's skin helps to keep him from being seen. His skin is dull brown and rough. A toad sitting on the ground looks like a lump of earth. If he sits still, it is hard to see him. Sometimes when he hears something coming, he spreads himself out flat and does not move. Often the animal that would eat him does not see him at all.

But if the toad is caught, he still has a way to help himself. His skin sends out a kind of juice. If an animal catches a toad in his mouth, the juice makes his mouth sting and burn. Perhaps the animal drops the toad, and it gets away.

Some folks think that this juice makes warts. This is not true. It does not hurt one unless he rubs it into his eyes or mouth. Then it stings just as it stings the dog's mouth. But you could rub it all over your hands without its hurting you or causing warts to grow.

Toads live a long time, unless something kills them. Once there was a pet toad that lived to be thirty-six years old. Nobody knows how much longer it might have lived had not a pet crow caught it one day and killed it.

Curly Locks and the Fluffy Tails

Curly Locks was a little girl who lived near the roadside. Her home was a big white house. An old oak tree shaded the house. A pair of bluebirds had a nest in a hole in the tree.

Curly Locks liked the shade of the oak tree when the sun was hot. Every day she came out of doors to play on the grass. She brought her dolls with her.

One day Curly Locks saw a little gray squirrel sitting up eating an acorn. She at once liked him and called him Fluffy Tail. Fluffy Tail's body was only about ten inches long. His tail was as long as his whole body. It curved like a plume over his humped back.

When the squirrel saw Curly Locks,

he was afraid. He dropped the acorn and up the tree he flashed to his nest. His tail waved behind him like a banner. He was gone so quickly that Curly Locks thought it might have been a wood fairy.

That night Curly Locks told her father about the little gray squirrel. Her father knew about the squirrel. He said Fluffy Tail and his mate had come to the oak tree to live only a few days before.

The squirrels had been living in a beech tree farther down the road. It was not a very safe place. Dogs barked at them and chased them. A pair of bluejays that had a nest in the beech tree flew at them and tried to peck them. Boys threw stones at them. That was why they had moved to the oak tree.

The squirrels liked the oak tree in Curly Locks' yard. Its bark was so rough that their tiny feet could cling to it without slipping. It was easy to run up and down such a tree.

The big oak tree was a good place for a squirrel's nest. There were many big forking branches, and there was a hollow in it that was big enough for a squirrel family's winter food supply.

The Fluffy Tails built their nest high in a fork of the tree. It was made of twigs, dry leaves, moss, and feathers. From the ground it looked like nothing but a big bunch of leaves.

The Fluffy Tails had to hurry to get the nest done. It was almost time for their babies to come. Every summer from three to five little squirrels came to live with them.

The nest was nearly done when the squirrels first saw Curly Locks. It was too late to find another tree and begin another nest. But they were very much afraid of her.

It was many days before they would let Curly Locks come near them. When she tried to come close to them, they

ran up the tree as fast as they could. Then they would chatter at her as though they were very angry.

One day when Curly Locks was under the tree, one of the squirrels grew bolder. He ran out on a long, low limb above her and leaped to the ground.

"Oh, you darling!" cried Curly Locks. "Don't be afraid of me. I wouldn't hurt you for the world."

Then Curly Locks had a bright idea. She had some peanuts in the house; maybe the squirrel would like them. She went in and got a handful, but when she came out the squirrel ran up the tree. She threw the peanuts about on the ground but the squirrel did not come down.

Next morning, though, she noticed that the peanuts were gone. Curly Locks was so glad she clapped her hands and ran to tell her mother. By and by the shy little animals would learn that she was their friend, she thought.

Every day Curly Locks brought out something for the Fluffy Tails to eat. It was not long before they stopped running away from Curly Locks. Soon they were sure it was quite safe for them to eat the food even when she was there watching them.

When Curly Locks took peanuts to the squirrels, they ran to meet her. Each little Fluffy Tail sat up on his hind legs and ate the peanuts she threw to him. He picked up only one peanut at a time, and held it between his forepaws. His forepaws were like little hands, with four fingers and a thumb. His hind paws were like feet, with five little toes and sharp toenails.

As the squirrel held the nut with both his hands, he cracked it with his sharp teeth. Then he dropped the shell and quickly put the nut meat into his mouth.

When the squirrels had enough to eat for one time, they carried the rest of the nuts away. They buried them under the bushes. They put each nut in a different place. They dug holes in the ground, put in the nuts, and then scratched earth over them.

The squirrels hid the nuts so well that no one else was ever likely to find them.

When they were hungry, they went to one of the storage places and dug up some of the nuts for lunch.

Soon both the squirrels became even more friendly with Curly Locks. They often asked her for food. They stood up on their hind legs and begged like little dogs. When they did that, Curly Locks threw two nuts to them. If they wanted more, they had to beg for them.

Every day the squirrels came nearer. At last they took food from the little girl's hands. After that they were never afraid. They even climbed to her shoulder. They hunted for nuts in the pockets of her coat and in her hat.