[5] "The Strange Adventures of a Pebble."
[6] That is to say, no descendants worthy of them. It is now thought some of the modern reptiles may be degenerate descendants of the big reptiles of old.
[7] Muir: "[The Mountains of California]."
[8] "[Outlines of Earth's History]."
[9] "The Two Majesties." This painting, by a great French realist, shows a lion getting home rather late, after his night out, stopping for a look at the rising sun; a thing with which, owing to his habits, he is not very familiar.
[10] When you study French, if you want to read this book—like most French works on science it is very interesting—ask for Perrier's "Organization des Lumbricus Terrestris."
[11] Just listen to this: "Worms," says Mr. Darwin, in that remarkable book of his, "are indifferent to very sharp objects, even rose thorns and small splinters of glass."
[12] In the world of science, the ant goes by her Latin name, Formica, and the whole family is known as the Formicidæ. To a Roman boy Formica simply meant "ant." Fusca is also Latin, and means "dark"; so you can see this part of the story is about a species of dark ant. As a matter of fact he is dark brown.
[13] The scientific name for this particular kind of ant is Lasius niger.
[14] A "bad" conductor is often a good thing, as you'll see by looking it up in the dictionary.