diently defend them from it. Is heat inconvenient to them? they take up their abode in the fhade. As the greater part of them during winter. are in a ftate of torpor, they generally choose a place where they may remain through that feafon fecure from its inclemency, or they conftruct habitations that are fufficiently fitted to defend them.

Although I have spoken above of the artifices and addrefs which fome infects put in practice, in order to feize their prey, it is a fubject which demonftrates in fo ftriking a manner their aftonishing fagacity that I cannot help in this place, adding fome farther remarks on it. Some are feen as I have already observed to wait patiently for their prey, till it comes within their reach, when they inftantly dart upon it, and feize it. This is done with a velocity equal to that of an arrow. Not to lofe the fruit of their watching, when they have once feized their prey, they preferve it with all the circumfpection pofiible. If any of them want the neceffary ftrength for this purpose, by being weaker than their prifoner, they call another to their affiftance.

Thofe that fpin, give an admirable proof of their dexterity in the performance of this function. It muft here be observed, that the wife author of the universe has abundantly furnished them with a foft and glutinous fubftance which is eafily fabricated, and which hardens in the air. Infects have the fa-. culty of drawing this from their bodies, either by the mouth or the abdomen. The threads they form are not all of the fame quality; they differ according to the different animals that spin them. Some make them exceeding fine and flender; while those of others are coarfe. It is eafy therefore to imagine that the web they weave will correfpond to the thread they employ. Some have the foftnefs of the finest wool,

wool, and the web of others has the ftiffnefs and ftrength of parchment.

The method of weaving is different in different infects. In the webs of fome, there feems to be neither order nor defign; but others obferve the moft exact proportions. Thefe take their dimenfions with fo much accuracy, that an Archimedes could not measure them more perfectly with his compaffes. But what would be the effect of reafon in a Geometrician, is done by mere inftinct in these animals.

Infects fhew themfelves to be as fkilful dyers, as they are dextrous weavers. They do not fpare the most beautiful colours in the webs they form. Some times they are yellow, fomerimes blue, grey or brown; but their colours always furpafs thofe which the moft skilful dyer could give them. When the rays of the Sun happen to fall on fome of thefe webs, the fplendour of their colonrs is fo great as to furpafs defcription; and exceeds the beauty of the rainbow, or the brilliance of the diamond.

Many caterpillars with wonderful dexterity let themfelves down, and re afcend by means of a thread iffuing from their body, and frong enough to fupport them. This operation they perform when they want to efcape from fome danger or to go elfewhere in queft of food. The manner in which they get up by this thread, is exceedingly curious: they ufe their teeth and their feet, as men ufe their hands and their legs when they climb up trees, but fomewhat differently; the latter clafp the tree with their hands as high as they can reach, and then draw up their legs; the caterpillar feizes the thread by which he is fufpended, with his teeth, as high as he can, then turning his head to one fide, he railes his fore

moft

moft feet above his head which grafp the thread and after having feized it, he reftores his head, and takes hold of the thread ftill higher, then again bending his head, and grafping the thread with his feet he continues to afcend, till he reaches the place from whence he let himfelf down.

The wife form of government among Bees, is too wonderful not to find a place in this chapter. They have at their head a Queen whoie ability in the art of governing her people is not lefs worthy of our admiration than that of thole Princes who have acquired the greateft fame by the wildom of their reign. The power the exercifes over her fubjects is more abfolute than that of the Grand Seignior fur. rounded with his Janiffaries. But her defpotic au. thority never degenerates into tyranny: fhe never is guilty of cruelty to her fubjects, the promptitude of their obedience fecures them from punishment. Neither the defire of independance, nor envy, nor any other paffion, ever occafion among them, fedition or tumult. How much below theie little creatures are men in this refpect! With what fanguinary fury do they not often rebell without reafon again their fu periors! What diforder have not their mutinies Ipread in the fociety of which they were members? But let us return to our Queen.

It is fhe who alone commands, whether it be to work, to fight or to fwarm, every thing depends on her alone. She no fooner promulgates her orders, than her fubjects fly to execute them with incredible ardour. On this fubject I fhall relate the obfervations of an ingenious Englishman:

"Many years ago, (fays Mr Warder in his Monarchy of Bees,) I having a mind to fatisfy my curiofity about the queen-bee, was refolved to run

the

the hazard at leaft of deftroying a fwarm of bees for that purpose; fo in the morning, about half an hour before fun-rifing, I took a fwarm of bees that had been hived the morning before, and carried it into a meadow adjoining to my garden, and there with a strong stroke upon the ground, fhook the bees all out in a lump upon the grafs. And as foon as they were a little quiet from the difturbance that fo violent a motion caufed; I laid myself down on the ground, and with a little stick in my hand, gently stirred the bees, in order to find the queen bee, and having described her to three or four of my family, which were then with me, defired them as I ftirred the bees, if any of them faw fuch a bee to fhew her to me; all being thus upon the fearch, at length one of them difcovered her, and pointing to her, I faw her, and quickly caught her in a box which I had ready for that purpofe, and carried her into my parlour, where opening my box, I let her fly, and a few of the other bees who were taken with her, who as is natural to them, did fly against the glass window, fo taking a fharp pair of fciffars I cut off one of her wings to difable her from flying, and then put her again into my box. The first thing I was willing to know, was what they would do without their queen; but this was foon difcovered, for they were in a quarter of an hour like fheep without a fhepherd, (which was as foon as the whole bunch could know that the queen was not amongst them,) which they foon difcovered, by fpreading themfelves abroad upon the grafs; for whereas it is natural to these creatures to keep close together like a bunch of grapes, they now fpread themfelves as broad as a cart wheel, running up and down, and with a piteous and difcontented note fearching for their queen. So when they had spent an hour or thereabout in this fruitless fearch, they took wing, and flew to a hedge, and there pitched, in which flight and pitching, there

were

were two things remarkable. FIRST, that they flew to the fame hedge, where the fwarm had pitched the day before, to fearch for her there, where they laft had her company. SECONDLY, how foon by the abfence of one bee, this monarchy was turned into anarchy; for now (inftead of going all together in a bunch, which is natural to them when they have their queen,) they were divided all along the hedge, for ten yards together in little bunches, forty or fifty in a bunch and fome larger bunches; fo then I pulled the box out of my pocket where the queen bee was, being willing to know whether or no they would again acknowledge their crippled Sovereign, and my thoughts then were, that they would not, fhe having been fo long from them, and her wing cut off, or for the fmell of the box, I did not know but thefe, or fome of thefe might give them fome diftafte; but to my great amazement and all that were with me, I no fooner opened the box, and laid it, queen and all upon the bank, near to one of thefe little bunches, but they immediately began to gather from hither and thither all about my box where the queen was,which was foon covered up, and in lefs than a quarter of an hour, they were all gathered together about their queen, rejoi cing, which rejoicing is eafy to perceive by those that are used among them by their notes. So having found their queen again, they lay all contented together, not running up and down, and spreading themfelves as before, when fhe was abfent. So night coming on, I again hived them, and brought them into my garden, for if I had let them remain abroad all night, the coldness of the night would have chilled them; fo that I fhould not have been able to make any farther discoveries with them. Next morning, being fine weather, I again knocked them out on the grafs, in the meadow as before, where they foon united themselves together about their beloved queen, R where