General History of Connecticut, from Its First Settlement Under George Fenwick to its Latest Period of Amity with Great BritainPeters, Samuel
History
General History of Connecticut, from Its First Settlement Under George Fenwick to its Latest Period of Amity with Great Britain
Peters, Samuel
Connecticut -- History -- Colonial period, ca. 1600-1775; Connecticut -- History -- Revolution, 1775-1783
The honey-bees can sting but once, while the humble-bee will sting a
thousand times. Their body is black and white; wings of a Doric
colour; sight piercing, hearing quick, and temper cruel.
Among the reptiles of Connecticut are the black, the water, milk, and
streaked snakes, all harmless. The belled or rattle-snakes are large,
and will gorge a common cat. They are seldom seen from their rocky
dens. Their bite is mortal if not speedily cured; yet they are
generous, and without guile; before they bite they rattle their bells
three or four times, but after that their motion is swift and stroke
sure. The Indians discovered and informed the English of a weed,
common in the country, which, mixed with spittle, will extract the
poison.
The toads and frogs are plenty in the spring of the year. The
tree-frogs, whippoorwills, and whooping owls, serenade the inhabitants
every night with music far excelling the harmony of the trumpet, drum,
and jews-harp.
The tree-frog cannot be called an insect, a reptile, or one of the
winged host; he has four legs, the two foremost short, with claws as
sharp as those of a squirrel; the hind-legs five inches long, and
folding by three joints. His body is about as big as the first joint
of a man’s thumb. Under his throat is a wind-bag, which assists him in
singing the word I-sa-ac all the night. When it rains, and is very
dark, he sings the loudest. His voice is not so pleasing as that of
the nightingale; but this would be a venial imperfection, if he would
but keep silence on Saturday nights, and not forever prefer I-sa-ac to
Abraham and Jacob. He has more elasticity in his long legs than any
other creature yet known. By this means he will leap five yards up a
tree, fastening himself to it by his fore legs, and in a moment will
hop or spring as far from one tree to another. It is from the singing
of the tree-frog that the Americans have acquired the name of Little
Isaac. Indeed, like a certain part of them, the creature appears very
devout, noisy, arbitrary, and phlegmatic, and associates with none but
what agree with him in his ways.
The oysters, clams, quauhogs, lobsters, crabs, and fish, are
innumerable. The shad, bass, and salmon, more than half support the
province. The sturgeon is made no use of. From the number of seines
employed to catch the fish passing up to the lakes, one might be led
to suppose the whole must be stopped; yet, in six months’ time they
return to the sea with such multitudes of young ones as to fill
Connecticut River for many days, and no finite being can number them.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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