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striking similitudes, either in their propagation, their manners, or their form, that give us a hint for grouping several of them into one description, and thus enabling us to shorten the labour of a separate history for every species. Swammerdam, Reaumur, and Linnæus, have each attempted to abridge the task of description, by throwing a number of similar animals into distinct classes, and thus making one general history stand for all. I will avail myself of their labours; and, uniting their general distinctions, throw the whole class of insects into four separate distributions, giving under each the history of every species that seems to me considerable enough to deserve our notice. Thus our labour will be shortened; and the very rank in which an insect is placed will, in some measure, exhibit a considerable part of its history.

In our cursory inspection of the insect tribe, the first animals that offer themselves are those which want wings, that appear crawling about on every plant, and on every spot of earth we regard with any degree of attention. Of these, some never obtain wings at any period of their existence, but are destined to creep on the vegetable, or the spot of earth, where they are stationed, for their whole lives. On the contrary, others are only candidates for a more happy situation; and only wait their growing wings, when they may be said to arrive at their state of full perfection.

Those that never have wings, but creep about till they die, may be considered as constituting the first class of insects. All these, the flea and the woodlouse only excepted, are produced from an egg; and when once they break the shell, they never

suffer any further change of form, but continue to grow larger till they die. Thus the louse or the spider are produced from an egg, never suffering any alteration when once they are excluded; but, like the chicken or the duck, remaining invariably the same, from their birth to their dissolution.*

The second order of insects consists of such as have wings; but which, when produced from the egg, have those wings cased up in such a manner as not to appear, This casting up of the wings, however, does not prevent the animal's running, leaping, and moving, with its natural celerity; but when, the case bursts, and the wings have a power of expanding, all the animal's motions become more extensive, and the animal arrives at full perfection. Thus the grasshopper, the dragon-fly, and the earwig, have their wings at first bound down; but when the skin that, like a pair of stays, kept them confined, bursts, they are then expanded, and the animal pursues the purposes for which it was produced...

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The third order of insects is of the moth and butterfly kind. These all have four wings, each

[* Almost all insects, except spiders and a few others without wings, undergo, a metamorphosis or change at three distinct periods of their existence. From the egg is produced the grub or caterpillar, covered with a soft skin, and furnished with feet in this state they are extremely voracious. After having grown to their full size, they are again changed to a chrysalis, either inclosed in a web which they spin about themselves, or in a hard, shell-like case in this state they lie torpid, and inactive, attached to some place of security. After remaining their proper period in this situation, the bonds that surround" them are broken asunder, r, and they come out transformed into the perfect insect.]dosa e dove diw bʊoun9 Sin Bản

covered with a mealy substance of various colours, which when handled comes off upon the fingers; and, if examined by the microscope, will appear like scales, with which the wing is nicely embroidered all over. These insects also are produced in da manner peculiar to themselves. They are first hatched from an egg, from whence proceeds a caterpillar that eats, and often casts its skin; the caterpillar having divested itself for the last time, assumes a new covering, which is called a chrysalis, or the cone in the silk-worm, in which it continues hidden till it comes forth a perfect moth or butterfly.

The fourth order is of those winged insects which come from a worm instead of a caterpillar, and yet go through changes similar to those which moths and butterflies are seen to undergo. They are first excluded from the egg as a worm, and then become a chrysalis ; in some, their wings and legs are seen; in others, the animal is quite detached from the cone in which it is concealed; but all at length break their prison, and come out perfect winged animals; some furnished with two wings and some with four. The wings of all these differ from those of the butterfly and moth kind, by not having the mealy scales which are ever found on the wings of the former. In this class we may place the numerous tribes of gnats, beetles, bees, and flies.

To these I will add, as a fifth order, a numerous tribe, lately discovered, to which naturalists have given the name of Zoophytes. These do not go through the ordinary forms of generation, but may be propagated by dissection. Some of these, though cut into a hundred parts, still retain life in each, and are endued with such a vivacious principle, that

every part will in a short time become a perfect animal. They seem a set of creatures placed between animals and vegetables, and make the shade that connects animated and insensible nature. To this class belong the polypus, the earth worm, and all the varieties of the sea-nettle. 1

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Having thus given a general distribution of insects, I will proceed to describe each class in the order I have mentioned them; beginning with insects without wings, as they more nearly resemble the higher ranks of nature, as well in their habits as their conformation.

Of Insects without Wings.

EVERY moment's observation furnishes us with instances of insects without wings; but the difficulty is to distinguish those which are condemned continually to lead reptile lives, from such as only wait the happy moment of transmutation. For this, nothing but a long and intimate acquaintance will suffice; but, in general, all animals resembling the flea, the louse, the spider, the bug, the wood-louse, the water-louse, and the scorpion, never acquire wings, but are produced from the egg in that form which they never change afterwards.

If we consider this class as distinct from others, we shall find them in general longer lived than the

rest, and often continuing their term beyond one season, which is the ordinary period of an insect's existence. They seem also less subject to the influence of the weather; and often endure the rigours of winter without being numbed into torpidity. The whole race of moths, butterflies, bees, and flies, are rendered lifeless by the return of cold weather; but we need not be told, that the louse, the flea, and many of these wingless creatures that seem formed to teize mankind, continue their painful depredations the whole year round.

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They come to perfection in the egg, as was said before; and it sometimes happens, that when the animal is interrupted in performing the offices of exclusion, the young ones burst the shell, within the parent's body, and are thus brought forth alive. This not unfrequently happens with the wood-louse, and others of the kind, which are sometimes seen producing eggs, and sometimes young ones perfectly formed.

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Though these creatures are perfect from the beginning, yet they are often, during their existence, seen to change their skin: this is a faculty which they possess in common which many of the higher ranks of animals, and which answers the same purposes. However tender their skins may seem to our feel, yet, if compared to the animal's strength and size, they will be found to resemble a coat of mail, or, to talk more closely, the shell of a lobster. By this skin these animals are defended from accidental injuries, and particularly from the attacks of each other. Within this they continue to grow, till their bodies become so large as to be imprisoned in