THE TORTOISE.

The use of tortoiseshell is widely known: in our attire, this material plays no small role, providing us with combs. I therefore believe that

information about the tortoise will not be indifferent to our Readers. The tortoise belongs to the most peculiar amphibians: its body is enclosed in a hard shell; only its head, four paws, and tail are visible. It lacks proper teeth; instead, it has a hard, horny jaw, similar to a bird’s beak; it feeds on plants and insects. There are land and water tortoises. Among the land tortoises, some reach considerable size: sometimes they have a circumference of twelve feet. The famous English naturalist Gilbert White made interesting observations about the tortoise; we will repeat them in a few words: “I was,” he says, “in autumn in Sussex County, where I stayed for some time in a small village. On the first of November, I observed that an old tortoise, the companion of my solitude, began to prepare its winter lair. Choosing a spot under a large bush, it dug the earth with its front paws, while with its hind paws it pushed the earth onto its back; the movements of its limbs were strangely slow and uniform, like the movement of a clock. However, it compensated for this slowness with extraordinary perseverance: day and night it dug the earth, sinking deeper and deeper. “I was particularly surprised by the fear it showed at the slightest change in the air. Although covered by a thick shield, over which a loaded cart could pass, the animal showed a peculiar aversion to rain, something like a woman dressed in silks and laces. When the first drops fell, it fled and hid its head under a tree. “The tortoise shows signs of life only during the day: at night it does not even move. Like all other amphibians, it has a stomach and lungs arranged in such a way that for a significant part of the year it can do without food and breathing. Waking up in spring from a long winter lethargy, it eats nothing for some time; in summer, however, during the heat, it needs a lot of nourishment. “This animal recognized its benefactors. When the lady of the house, who had fed it for thirty years, appeared at the threshold, it hurried as fast as it could towards her, while paying no attention to strangers. This sight truly moved me. So I thought to myself, even the slowest, most sluggish of animals distinguishes the hand that feeds it and turns to it, guided by a feeling of gratitude, while man most often forgets this feeling. “Although the tortoise likes warm temperatures, in summer it nevertheless seeks shelter from excessively hot rays; probably because its thick skin, when excessively heated by the sun, would burn it unbearably.”

It usually spends the hottest hours in cabbage or asparagus. In autumn, however, it enjoys staying in the sun.” White, having later received as a gift the tortoise he encountered in Sussex County, makes these further observations about it: “It was in March,” he says, “I was digging the earth, wanting to extract it from its winter hiding place. The tortoise, half-awake, showed anger with a slight hiss. Disregarding this, I packed it in a box with earth and took it thirty miles away. The rattling of the wheels and the movement of the carriage fully awakened it; when I placed it on the ground, it went to the end of the garden. But in the evening, when the air cooled, it hid in a clay bowl and remained there for some time. Since then it lived under my observation, I could closely observe its way of life, customs, and inclinations. I noticed that when spring arrived, the time of awakening, it made a tiny opening in the earth to slowly accustom itself to the air. From mid-November to mid-April, it remained in the earth: in summer it fell asleep at four in the afternoon and woke up quite late. Besides, it always slept during the rain.” Tortoise shell is an important item in trade and industry. To give it any desired shape, it is soaked in hot water and placed in a mold, or pressed with an iron press. Afterwards, it is given a polish. The meat of some species is praised for its excellent taste. Having lived on earth for some time, calmly and innocently, the poor tortoise gives us itself for food and leaves behind a valuable shell, so strong and useful. Its slow movements are commonly laughed at. To these, the tortoise can boldly say: “Try, like me, to carry your own house on your back, and we shall see who outruns whom.” Translated from English from the work of Doctor Franklin.