The Delivery Of Decor Glover Family Saga

Christian Romance Shiloh Ridge Ranch In Three

Rivers Romance Book 7 Liz Isaacson download

https://ebookbell.com/product/the-delivery-of-decor-glover-
family-saga-christian-romance-shiloh-ridge-ranch-in-three-rivers-
romance-book-7-liz-isaacson-51752772

Explore and download more ebooks at ebookbell.com

Here are some recommended products that we believe you will be
interested in. You can click the link to download.

The Delivery Of Decor Glover Family Saga Christian Romance Shiloh

Ridge Ranch In Three Rivers Romance Book 7 Liz Isaacson

https://ebookbell.com/product/the-delivery-of-decor-glover-family-
saga-christian-romance-shiloh-ridge-ranch-in-three-rivers-romance-
book-7-liz-isaacson-44796502

The Delivery Of Decor Glover Family Saga Christian Romance Shiloh

Ridge Ranch In Three Rivers Romance Book 7 Liz Isaacson

https://ebookbell.com/product/the-delivery-of-decor-glover-family-
saga-christian-romance-shiloh-ridge-ranch-in-three-rivers-romance-
book-7-liz-isaacson-51857474

The Delivery Of Decor Glover Family Saga Christian Romance Shiloh

Ridge Ranch In Three Rivers Romance Book 7 Liz Isaacson

https://ebookbell.com/product/the-delivery-of-decor-glover-family-
saga-christian-romance-shiloh-ridge-ranch-in-three-rivers-romance-
book-7-liz-isaacson-51993728

The Delivery Of Regenerative Medicines And Their Impact On Healthcare

1st Edition Catherine Prescott

https://ebookbell.com/product/the-delivery-of-regenerative-medicines-
and-their-impact-on-healthcare-1st-edition-catherine-prescott-2214778
The Delivery Of Nanoparticles Mostly Biomed Applns A Hashim

https://ebookbell.com/product/the-delivery-of-nanoparticles-mostly-
biomed-applns-a-hashim-4115008

The Delivery Of Flesh Francis James Blair

https://ebookbell.com/product/the-delivery-of-flesh-francis-james-
blair-48799252

Epidemiology And The Delivery Of Health Care Services Methods And

Applications 3rd Edition Denise M Oleske Auth

https://ebookbell.com/product/epidemiology-and-the-delivery-of-health-
care-services-methods-and-applications-3rd-edition-denise-m-oleske-
auth-2201396

Bulletproof Witch The Delivery Of Flesh Episode 1 Francis James Blair

https://ebookbell.com/product/bulletproof-witch-the-delivery-of-flesh-
episode-1-francis-james-blair-37401972

Epidemiology And The Delivery Of Health Care Services Methods And

Applications Denise M Oleske Auth

https://ebookbell.com/product/epidemiology-and-the-delivery-of-health-
care-services-methods-and-applications-denise-m-oleske-auth-4265470
 Another Random Document on
Scribd Without Any Related Topics
are not possessed of it; but they have something similar, by way of
[190]
equivalent.

Insects, so far as I find myself able to ascertain, seem to have

[191]
neither sinews, bones, spines, cartilages, fat, nor flesh; nor yet
so much as a frail shell, like some of the marine animals, nor even
anything that can with any propriety be termed skin; but they have a
body which is of a kind of intermediate nature between all these, of
an arid substance, softer than muscle, and in other respects of a
nature that may, in strictness, be rather pronounced yielding, than
hard. Such, then, is all that they are, and nothing more: in the inside
of their bodies there is nothing, except in a few, which have an
intestine arranged in folds. Hence, even when cut asunder, they are
remarkable for their tenacity of life, and the palpitations which are to
be seen in each of their parts. For every portion of them is
possessed of its own vital principle, which is centred in no limb in
particular, but in every part of the body; least of all, however, in the
head, which alone is subject to no movements unless torn off
together with the corselet. No kind of animal has more feet than the
insects have, and those which have the most, live the longest when
cut asunder, as we see in the case of the scolopendra. They have
eyes, as well the senses of touch and taste; some of them have also
the sense of smelling, and a few that of hearing.

236
 CHAPTER III.
BEES.

But among them all, the first rank, and our special admiration,
ought, in justice, to be accorded to bees, which alone, of all the
insects, appear to have been created for the benefit of man. They
extract honey and collect it, a juicy substance remarkable for its
extreme sweetness, lightness, and wholesomeness. They form their
combs and collect wax, an article that is useful for a thousand
purposes of life; they are patient of fatigue, toil at their labors, form
themselves into political communities, hold councils together in
private, elect chiefs in common, and, a thing that is the most
remarkable of all, have their own code of morals. In addition to this,
being as they are neither tame nor wild, so all-powerful is Nature,
that, from a creature so minute as to be nothing more hardly than
the shadow of an animal, she has created a marvel beyond all
comparison. What muscular power, what exertion of strength are we
to put in comparison with such vast energy and industry as theirs?
What display of human genius, in a word, shall we compare with the
reasoning powers manifested by them? In this they have, at all
events, the advantage of us—they know of nothing but what is for
the common benefit of all. Away, then, with all questions whether
they breathe or no, and let us be ready to agree on the question of
their blood.—And now let us form some idea of the instinct they
display.

Bees keep within the hive during the winter—for whence are they to
derive the strength requisite to withstand frosts and snows, and the
northern blasts? The same, in fact, is done by all insects, but not to
so late a period; as those which conceal themselves in the walls of
our houses are much sooner sensible of the returning warmth. With
reference to bees, either seasons and climates have 237
considerably changed, or else former writers have been
greatly mistaken. They retire for the winter at the setting of the
Vergiliæ, and remain shut up till after the rising of that constellation,
well past the beginning of spring. They do not come forth to ply
their labors until the bean blossoms; but then not a day do they lose
in inactivity, while the weather is favorable for their pursuits.

First of all, they set about constructing their combs, and forming the
wax, or, in other words, making their dwellings and cells; after this
they produce their eggs and then make honey and wax from
flowers, and extract bee-glue from the tears of those trees which
distil glutinous substances, the juices, gums, and resins, namely, of
the willow, the elm, and the reed. With these substances, as well as
others of a more bitter nature, they first line the whole inside of the
hive, as a sort of protection against the greedy propensities of other
small insects, as they are well aware that they are about to form
that which will prove an object of attraction to them. Having done
this, they employ similar substances in narrowing the entrance to
the hive, if otherwise too wide.

The bees also form collections of “bee-bread” to serve as the food of

the bees while they are at work, and is often found stowed away in
the cavities of the cells, being of a bitter flavor. It is produced from
the spring dews and the gummy juices of trees, being less abundant
while the south-west wind is blowing, and blackened by the
prevalence of a south wind. Sometimes it is of a reddish color and
becomes improved by the north-east wind; it is found in the greatest
abundance upon the nut trees in Greece.

Bees form wax from the blossoms of almost all trees and plants.
Where olives are in the greatest abundance, the swarms of bees are
the most numerous. Bees are not injurious to fruit of any kind; they
will never settle on a dead flower, much less a dead carcass. They
pursue their labors within three-score paces of their hives; 238
and when the flowers in their vicinity are exhausted, they
send out scouts from time to time, to discover places for forage at a
greater distance. When overtaken by night in their expeditions, they
watch till the morning, lying on their backs, in order to protect their
wings from the action of the dew.

It is not surprising that there have been persons who have made
bees their exclusive study; Aristomachus of Soli, for instance, who
for a period of fifty-eight years did nothing else; Philiscus of Thasos,
also, surnamed Agrius, who passed his life in desert spots, tending
swarms of bees. Both of these have written works on this subject.
 CHAPTER IV.
THE MODE IN WHICH BEES WORK.

The manner in which bees carry on their work is as follows. In the

day time a guard is stationed at the entrance of the hive, like the
sentries in a camp. At night they take their rest until one of them
awakes the others in the morning with a humming noise, repeated
twice or thrice, just as though it were sounding a trumpet. They
then take their flight in a body, if the day is likely to turn out fine; for
they have the gift of foreknowing wind and rain, and in such case
will keep close within their dwellings. On the other hand, in fine
weather the swarm issues forth, and at once applies itself to its
work, some loading their legs from the flowers, while others fill their
mouths with water, and charge the downy surface of their bodies
with drops of liquid. Those among them that are young go forth to
their labors, and collect the materials already mentioned, while those
that are more aged stay within the hives and work. The bees whose
business it is to carry the flowers use their fore feet to load 239
their thighs, which Nature has made rough for the purpose,
and with their trunks load their fore feet: bending beneath their
load, they then return to the hive, where there are three or four
bees ready to receive them and aid in discharging their burdens. For,
within the hive as well, they have their allotted duties to perform:
some are engaged in building, others in smoothing the combs, while
others again are occupied in passing on the materials, and others in
preparing food from the provision which has been brought; that
there may be no unequal division, either in their labor, their food, or
the distribution of their time, they do not even feed separately.

Commencing at the vaulted roof of the hive, they begin the

construction of their cells, and, just as we do in the manufacture of
a web, they construct their cells from top to bottom, taking care to
leave two passages around each compartment, for the entrance of
some and the exit of others. The combs, which are fastened to the
hive in the upper part, and in a slight degree also at the sides,
adhere to each other, and are thus suspended altogether. They do
not touch the floor of the hive, and are either angular or round,
according to its shape; sometimes, in fact, they are both angular and
round at once, when two swarms are living in unison, but have
dissimilar modes of operation. They prop up the combs that are
likely to fall, by means of arched pillars, at intervals springing from
the floor, so as to leave them a passage for the purpose of effecting
repairs. The first three ranks of their cells are generally left empty
when constructed; and the last ones, especially, are filled with
honey: hence the combs are always taken out at the back of the
hive.

The bees that are employed in carrying look out for a favorable
breeze, and if a gale should happen to spring up, they poise
themselves in the air with little stones, by way of ballast; some
writers say that they place them upon their shoulders. When the
wind is contrary, they fly close to the ground, taking care, 240
however, to keep clear of the brambles. It is wonderful what
strict watch is kept upon their work: all instances of idleness are
carefully remarked, the offenders are chastised, and on a repetition
of the fault, punished with death. Their sense of cleanliness, too, is
quite extraordinary; everything is removed that might be in the way,
and the rubbish and waste bits made by those that are at work
within, is all collected into one spot, and on stormy days, when they
are obliged to cease their ordinary labors, they employ themselves in
carrying it out. Towards evening, the buzzing in the hive becomes
gradually less and less, until at last one of their number is to be seen
flying about the hive with the same loud humming noise with which
they were aroused in the morning, thereby giving the signal, as it
were, to retire to rest: in this, too, they imitate the usage of the
camp. The moment the signal is heard, all is silent.
They first construct the dwellings of the commonalty, then those of
[192]
the king-bee. If they have reason to expect an abundant season,
they add abodes also for the drones: these are cells of a smaller
size, though the drones themselves are larger than the bees.

The drones have no sting, and would seem to be a kind of imperfect

bee, formed the very last of all; a late and tardy offspring, and
doomed, in a measure, to be the slaves of the genuine bees. The
others exercise over them a rigorous authority, compel them to take
the foremost rank in their labors, and if they show any sluggishness,
[193]
punish them without mercy. When the honey is beginning to
come to maturity, the bees drive away the drones, and setting upon
each in great numbers, put them all to death. It is only in the spring
that the drones are ever to be seen. If you deprive a drone of 241
its wings, and then replace it in the hive, it will pull off the
wings of the other drones.

In the lower part of the hive they construct for their future sovereign
a palatial abode, spacious and grand, separated from the rest, and
surmounted by a sort of dome: if this prominence should happen to
be flattened, all hopes of progeny are lost. All the cells are
hexagonal. No part of this work is done at any stated time, as the
bees seize every opportunity for the performance of their task when
the days are fine; in one or two days, at most, they fill their cells
with honey.

The honey is always best in those countries where it is to be found

deposited in the calix of the most exquisite flowers, such, for
instance, as the districts of Hymettus in Attica, and Hybla in Sicily,
and after them the island of Calydna. At first, honey is thin, like
water, after which it effervesces for some days, and purifies itself like
must. On the twentieth day it begins to thicken, and soon after
becomes covered with a thin membrane, which gradually increases
through the scum which is thrown up by the heat. The honey of the
very finest flavor, and the least tainted by the leaves of trees, is that
gathered from the foliage of the oak and the linden, and from reeds.

In some countries we find the honey-comb remarkable for the

goodness of the wax, as in Sicily and the country of the Peligni; in
other places the honey itself is found in greater abundance, as in
Crete, Cyprus, and Africa; and in others, again, the comb is
remarkable for its size; in Germany a comb has been known to be as
much as eight feet in length.

In taking the combs the greatest care is always requisite, for the
bees become desperate when stinted for food, and either pine to
death, or wing their flight to other places: on the other hand, over-
abundance will entail idleness, and they will feed upon the honey,
and not the bee bread. The most careful breeders take care to leave
the bees a fifteenth part of this gathering.

The crop of honey is most abundant if gathered at full moon, 242

and is richest when the weather is fine. The summer honey is
the most esteemed of all, from the fact of its being made when the
weather is dryest: it is best when made from thyme; it is then of a
golden color, and of a most delicious flavor. Thyme honey does not
coagulate, and on being touched will draw out into thin viscous
threads, the proof of its heaviness. When honey shows no tenacity,
and the drops immediately part from one another, it is looked upon
as a sign of its worthlessness.
 CHAPTER V.
THE MODE OF GOVERNMENT OF THE BEES.

Let a man employ himself, forsooth, in the enquiry whether there

has been only one Hercules, how many Bacchuses there have been,
and all the other questions which are buried deep in the mould of
antiquity! Here behold a tiny object, one to be met with at most of
our country retreats, and numbers of which are always at hand, and
yet, after all, it is not agreed among authors whether or not the
[194]
king is the only one among them that is provided with no sting,
and is possessed of no other arms than those afforded him by his
majestic office, or whether Nature has granted him a sting, and has
only denied him the power of making use of it; it being a well-known
fact, that the ruling bee never does use a sting. The obedience
which his subjects manifest in his presence is quite surprising. When
he goes forth, the whole swarm attends him, throngs about him,
surrounds him, protects him, and will not allow him to be seen. At
other times, when the swarm is at work within, the king is seen to
visit the works, and appears to be giving his encouragement, 243
being himself the only one that is exempt from work: around
him are certain other bees which act as body-guards and lictors, the
careful guardians of his authority. The king never quits the hive
except when the swarm is about to depart; a thing which may be
known a long time beforehand, as for some days a peculiar buzzing
noise is to be heard within, which denotes that the bees are waiting
for a favorable day, and making all due preparations for their
departure. On such an occasion, if care is taken to deprive the king
of one of his wings, the swarm will not fly away. When they are on
the wing, every one is anxious to be near him, and takes a pleasure
in being seen in the performance of its duty. When he is weary, they
support him on their shoulders; and when he is quite tired, they
carry him outright. If one of them falls in the rear from weariness, or
happens to go astray, it is able to follow the others by the aid of its
acuteness of smell. Wherever the king bee happens to settle, that
becomes the encampment of all.

Happy omens are sometimes afforded by the swarming of bees,

clustering, as they do, like a bunch of grapes, upon houses or
temples; presages often of great events. Bees settled upon the lips
of Plato when still an infant, announcing thereby the sweetness of
that persuasive eloquence for which he was so noted. Bees settled in
the camp of the chieftain Drusus when he gained the brilliant victory
at Arbalo; a proof that the conjectures of soothsayers are not by any
means infallible, for they consider this always of evil augury. When
their leader is withheld from them, the swarm can always be
detained; when lost, it will disperse and take its departure to find
other kings. Without a king, they cannot exist.

If food fail the inhabitants of any particular hive, the swarm makes a
concerted attack upon a neighboring one, with the view of
plundering it. The swarm attacked at once ranges itself in battle
array, and if the bee-keeper should happen to be present, 244
that side which perceives itself favored by him will refrain
from attacking him. They often fight, for other reasons, and the two
generals are to be seen drawing up their ranks in battle array
against their opponents. The battle is immediately ended by
throwing dust among them, or raising a smoke; and if milk or honey
mixed with water is placed before them, they speedily become
reconciled.
 CHAPTER VI.
WASPS AND HORNETS.

Wasps build their nests of mud in lofty places, and make wax:
hornets, on the other hand, build in holes or in the hollows of trees.
With these two kinds the cells are also hexagonal, but, in other
respects, though made of the bark of trees, they strongly resemble
the substance of a spider’s web. Their young are found at irregular
intervals, and are of unshapely appearance; while one is able to fly,
another is still a mere pupa, and a third only in the maggot state.
The wasp which is known as the ichneumon, a smaller kind than the
others, kills one kind of spider in particular, known as the
phalangium; after which it carries the body to its nest, covers it over
with a sort of gluey substance, and then sits and hatches from it its
[195]
young. In addition to this, they are all of them carnivorous, while
bees will touch no animal substance whatever. Wasps particularly
pursue the larger flies, and after catching them cut off the head and
carry away the remaining portion of the body.

Wild hornets live in the holes of trees, and in winter, like other
insects, keep themselves concealed; their life does not exceed two
years in length. Not unfrequently, their sting is productive of 245
an attack of fever, and there are authors who say that thrice
nine stings will suffice to kill a man. In spring they build their nests,
generally with four entrances, and here the working hornets are
produced: after these have been hatched they form other nests of
larger size. These races, too, have their drones. Neither hornets nor
wasps have a king, nor do they ever congregate in swarms.
 CHAPTER VII.
THE SILK-WORM.

Another class of insects spring from a grub of larger size, with two
horns of very peculiar appearance. The larva becomes a caterpillar,
after which it assumes the state in which it is known as bombylis,
then that called necydalus, and in six months it becomes a silk-
worm. These insects weave webs similar to those of the spider, the
material of which is used for making the more costly and luxurious
garments of ladies, known as “bombycina.” Pamphile, a woman of
Cos, the daughter of Platea, was the first person who discovered the
art of unravelling these webs and spinning a tissue therefrom.

The silk-worm is said to be a native of the isle of Cos, where the

vapors of the earth give new life to the flowers of the cypress, the
terebinth, the ash, and the oak which have been beaten down by
the showers. At first they assume the appearance of small butterflies
with naked bodies, but soon after, being unable to endure the cold,
they throw out bristly hairs, and assume quite a thick coat against
the winter, rubbing off the down that covers the leaves, by the aid of
the roughness of their feet. This they compress into balls by carding
it with their claws, and then draw it out and hang it between the
branches of the trees, making it fine by combing it out: last of all,
they take and roll it round their body, thus forming a nest in 246
which they are enveloped. In this state they are taken; after
which they are placed in earthen vessels in a warm place, and fed
upon bran. A peculiar sort of down soon shoots forth upon the body,
on being clothed with which they are set to work upon another task.
The cocoons which they have begun to form are rendered soft and
pliable by the aid of water, and are then drawn out into threads by
means of a spindle made of a reed. Even men have not felt ashamed
to make use of garments formed of this material, in consequence of
their extreme lightness in summer: for, so greatly have manners
degenerated in our day, that, so far from wearing a cuirass, a thin
garment is found to be too heavy.
 CHAPTER VIII.
SPIDERS.

It is by no means an absurdity to append to the silk-worm an

account of the spider—a creature worthy of our special admiration.
The phalangium is of small size, with body spotted and running to a
point; their bite is venomous, and they leap as they move from place
to place. Another kind is black, with fore legs remarkable for their
length. They have all of them three joints in the legs. The smaller
kind of wolf-spider does not make a web, but the larger ones make
holes in the earth, and spread their nets at the narrow entrance. A
third kind is remarkable for the skill which it displays in its
operations. These spin a large web, the creature having in itself a
certain faculty of secreting a peculiar sort of woolly substance. How
steadily does it work with its claws, how beautifully rounded and
how equal are the threads as it forms its web, while it employs the
weight of its body as an equipoise! It begins at the middle to weave
its web, and then extends it by adding the threads in rings 247
around, like a warp upon the woof: forming the meshes at
equal intervals, but continually enlarging them as the web increases
in breadth, it finally unites them all by an indissoluble knot. With
what wondrous art does it conceal the snares that lie in wait for its
prey in its checkered nettings! How loose is the body of the web as
it yields to the blasts, and how readily does it catch all objects which
come in its way! You would fancy that it had left, quite exhausted,
the thrums of the upper portion of its net unfinished where they are
spread across; for with the greatest difficulty can they be perceived,
and yet the moment that an object touches them, like the lines of
the hunter’s net, they throw it into the body of the web. With what
architectural skill, too, is its hole arched over, and how well defended
by a nap of extra thickness against the cold! How carefully it retires
into a corner, and appears intent upon something else, all the while
keeping so carefully shut up from view, that it is impossible to
perceive whether there is anything within or not! And then, how
extraordinary the strength of the web! When is the wind ever known
to break it, or what accumulation of dust is able to weigh it down?

The spider often spreads its web right across between two trees, the
thread extending from the very top of the tree to the ground, while
the insect springs up again in an instant from the earth, and travels
aloft by the self-same thread, thus mounting at the same moment
and spinning its threads. When its prey falls into its net, how on the
alert it is, and with what readiness it runs to seize it! Even though it
should be adhering to the very edge of its web, the insect always
runs instantly to the middle, where it can most effectually shake the
web, and so successfully entangle its prey. When the web is torn,
the spider immediately sets about repairing it, and that so neatly,
that nothing like patching can ever be seen. The spider lies in wait
even for the young of the lizard, and after enveloping the 248
head of the animal, bites its lips; a sight by no means
unworthy of the amphitheatre itself, when it is one’s good fortune to
witness it. Presages also are drawn from the spider; for when a river
is about to swell, it will suspend its web higher than usual. As these
insects spin not in calm weather, but when it is cloudy, a great
number of cobwebs is a sure sign of showery weather. It is generally
supposed that the female spider spins while the male lies in wait for
prey, thus making an equal division of their duties.
 CHAPTER IX.
LOCUSTS.

Locusts lay their eggs in large masses, in the autumn, in holes which
they form in the ground. These eggs remain underground
throughout the winter, and in the ensuing year, at the close of
spring, small locusts issue from them, of a black color. A wet spring
destroys their eggs, while, if it is dry, they multiply in great
abundance.

Locusts are produced only in champaign places, that are full of

chinks and crannies. In India, it is said that they attain the length of
[196]
three feet, and that the people dry the legs and thighs, and use
them for saws. Sometimes the winds carry off these creatures in
vast swarms, upon which they fall into the sea or standing waters,
and perish. Some authors have stated, that they are unable to fly
during the night, in consequence of the cold, being ignorant of the
fact that they travel over lengthened tracts of sea for many days
together, a thing the more to be wondered at, as they have to
endure hunger all the time as well, for this it is which causes them
to be thus seeking pastures in other lands. Such a visitation 249
is looked upon as a plague inflicted by the anger of the gods;
for as they fly they appear to be larger than they really are, while
they make such a loud noise with their wings, that they might be
readily supposed to be winged creatures of quite another species.
Their numbers, too, are so vast, that they quite darken the sun;
while the people below are anxiously following them with the eye, to
see if they are about to make a descent, and so cover their lands.
After all, they have the requisite energies for their flight; and, as
though it had been but a trifling matter to pass over the seas, they
cross immense tracts of country, and cover them in clouds which
bode destruction to the harvests. Scorching numerous objects by
their very contact, they eat away everything with their teeth, even
the very doors of the houses.

Those from Africa are the ones which chiefly devastate Italy; and
more than once the Roman people have been obliged to have
recourse to the Sibylline Books, to learn what remedies to employ
under their existing apprehensions of impending famine. In the
[197]
territory of Cyrenaica there is a law, which even compels the
people to make war, three times a year, against the locusts, first, by
crushing their eggs, next by killing the young, and last of all by
killing those of full growth; and he who fails to do so, incurs the
penalty of being treated as a deserter. In the island of Lemnos also,
there is a certain measure fixed by law, which each individual is
bound to fill with locusts which he has killed, and then bring it to the
magistrates. They pay great respect to the jack-daw, which flies to
meet the locusts, and kills them in great numbers. In Syria, the
people are placed under martial law, and compelled to kill them: in
so many countries does this dreadful pest prevail. The Parthians look
upon them as a choice food, and the grasshopper as well. The voice
of the locust appears to proceed from the back part of the head. It is
generally believed that in this place, where the shoulders join 250
on to the body, they have, as it were, a kind of teeth, and by
grinding these against each other they produce the harsh noise
which they make. About the two equinoxes they are to be heard in
the same way that we hear the chirrup of the grasshopper about the
summer solstice. In all these kinds of insects the male is of smaller
size than the female.
 CHAPTER X.
ANTS.

Ants work in common, like bees; but while the latter make their
food, the former only store it away. If a person compares the
burdens which the ants carry with the size of their bodies, he must
confess that there is no animal which, in proportion, is possessed of
a greater degree of strength. They carry these burdens with the
mouth, or, when it is too large to admit of that, they turn their backs
to it, and push it onwards with their feet, while they use their utmost
energies with their shoulders. These insects have a political
community among themselves, and are possessed of both memory
and foresight. They gnaw each grain before they lay it by, for fear
lest it should shoot while under ground; they divide those grains
which are too large for admission, at the entrance of their holes; and
those which have become soaked by the rain, they bring out and
[198]
dry. They work, too, by night, during the full moon. What ardor
they display in their labors, what wondrous carefulness! Because
they collect their stores from different quarters, in ignorance of the
proceedings of one another, they have certain days set apart for
holding a kind of market, on which they meet together and 251
take stock. What vast throngs are then to be seen hurrying
together, what anxious enquiries appear to be made, and what
earnest parleys are going on among them as they meet! We see
even the very stones worn away by their footsteps, and roads
beaten down by being the scene of their labors. Let no one fail to
see how much can be effected by assiduity and application, even in
the very humblest of objects! Ants are the only living beings, besides
man, that bestow burial on the dead.
 MERIAN’S OPOSSUM.—Philander Dorsigerus.

The horns of an Indian ant, suspended in the temple of Hercules, at

Erythræ, have been looked upon as quite miraculous for their size.
This ant excavates gold from holes, in a country in the north of
India, the inhabitants of which are known as the Dardæ. It has the
[199]
color of a cat, and is in size as large as an Egyptian wolf. This
gold, which it extracts in the winter, is taken by the Indians during
the heats of summer, while the ants are compelled, by the excessive
warmth, to hide themselves in their holes. Still, however, aroused by
the scent of the Indians, they will sally forth, and frequently tear
them to pieces, though the Indians may be provided with the
swiftest camels for the purpose of flight; so great is their fleetness,
combined with their ferocity and their passion for gold!

252
 Book IX.
THE NATURAL HISTORY OF METALS.
 CHAPTER I.
GOLD.

We are now about to speak of metals, of actual wealth, the standard

of comparative value, objects for which we diligently search, within
the earth, in numerous ways. In one place, for instance, we
undermine it for the purpose of obtaining riches, to supply the
exigencies of life, searching for either gold or silver, electrum or
copper. In another place, to satisfy the requirements of luxury, our
researches extend to gems and pigments, with which to adorn our
fingers and the walls of our houses: while in a third place, we gratify
our rash propensities by a search for iron, which, amid wars and
carnage, is deemed more acceptable even than gold. We trace out
all the veins of the earth, and yet, living upon it, undermined as it is
beneath our feet, are astonished that it should occasionally cleave
asunder or tremble: as though, forsooth, these signs could be any
other than expressions of the indignation felt by our sacred parent!
We penetrate into her entrails, and seek for treasures in the abodes
even of the Manes as though each spot we tread upon were not
sufficiently bounteous and fertile for us!

And yet, amid all this, we are far from making remedies the object of
our researches: and how few in thus delving into the earth have in
view the promotion of medicinal knowledge! For upon her surface
she has presented us with these substances, equally with the 253
cereals, bounteous and ever ready, as she is, in supplying us
with all things for our benefit! It is what is concealed from our view,
what is sunk far beneath her surface, objects, in fact, of no rapid
formation, that urge us to our ruin, that send us to the very depths
of hell. As the mind ranges in vague speculation, let us only consider,
proceeding through all ages, as these operations are, when will be
the end of thus exhausting the earth, and to what point will avarice
finally penetrate! How innocent, how happy, how truly delightful
Welcome to our website – the perfect destination for book lovers and
knowledge seekers. We believe that every book holds a new world,
offering opportunities for learning, discovery, and personal growth.
That’s why we are dedicated to bringing you a diverse collection of
books, ranging from classic literature and specialized publications to
self-development guides and children's books.

More than just a book-buying platform, we strive to be a bridge

connecting you with timeless cultural and intellectual values. With an
elegant, user-friendly interface and a smart search system, you can
quickly find the books that best suit your interests. Additionally,
our special promotions and home delivery services help you save time
and fully enjoy the joy of reading.

Join us on a journey of knowledge exploration, passion nurturing, and

personal growth every day!

ebookbell.com