length finishes and covers in its snug and warm retreat; and then, still further to secure itself from the action of the atmosphere, with the slimy secretion with which its Maker has gifted it, fixes partition after partition, and fills each cell, formed by it, with air, till it has retreated as far as it can from every closed orifice of its shell, and thus barricades itself against a frozen death. Again, in the spring, when the word is spoken,-Awake, thou that sleepest, it begins immediately to act with energy; it reinspires, as above related, the air stored in its cells; bursts all its cerements; returns to its summer haunts, and again lays waste our gardens."*

SEVENTH WEEK-SATURDAY.

HYBERNATION OF THE BEETLE.-ANIMALCULES IN PASTE.

AMONG insects, the beetle has some peculiar instincts, which will come more properly under our observation at another season. At present, I shall only mention three instances of remarkable habits, relating to the state of particular species of this insect in winter. Beetles, it may be premised, are distinguished from other tribes of the same order, by being furnished with cases to cover two transparent wings. Like other insects, they are bred from eggs, which first become grubs; then chrysalides, in which parts of the future fly are distinctly seen; and, lastly, assuming their perfect or imago state, they acquire wings, and mount into the air.

The first species of this little animal which I shall introduce to the notice of my readers, is the May-bug, or

* [Our American snails, or Helices, form for their operculum, or epiphragm, merely a thin, and almost transparent membrane, and not a calcareous and opaque one. Nor do they infest our gardens, but are principally to be found in thick forests and unsettled or thinly inhabited regions. AM. ED.]

Dorr-beetle, well known to children by its evening buzz during the months of summer. In its maggot state, in which it remains, without any other change than increase of size and the annual renewal of its skin, for no less a period than three years, it burrows under ground, so near the surface, as to devour the roots of plants, on which it feeds voraciously, and without discrimination. When largest, it is found an inch and a half long, of a whitishyellow color, with a body consisting of twelve segments or joints, on each side of which there are nine breathing holes, and three red feet; but it is destitute of eyes, having no occasion for them in its natural habitation, where light does not penetrate,-here exhibiting a new and remarkable instance of the attention of the Creator, in adapting the faculties of creatures to the situation for which they are destined, as well in what He withholds as in what He grants.

At the end of the fourth year of its existence, it begins to provide itself a secure winter habitation, with a view to its future condition. About the latter end of August, it seems first to come under the influence of that extraordinary instinct, which leads it to prepare for its important change. It then buries itself deeper and deeper in the earth, sometimes, in favorable situations, to the depth of six feet, and there forms for itself a capacious apartment, the walls of which it renders very smooth and shining, by the exertions of its body. Its abode being thus formed, it begins soon after to shorten itself, to swell, and to burst its last skin, in order to assume the form of a chrysalis. This, in the beginning, appears of a yellowish color, which heightens by degrees, till at last it appears nearly red. Its exterior form plainly discovers all the vestiges of the future winged insect, the entire fore-parts being distinctly seen; while, behind, the animal seems as if wrapped in swaddling-clothes.

The young May-bug continues in this state for nearly three months, and then divests itself of all its impediments, and becomes a winged insect, completely formed. This happens about the beginning of the year; but it is not yet time for it to emerge into open day, the season

of the year being unpropitious to its new habits. Unlike most other insects, therefore, which, immediately after their change, enter at once into all the enjoyments of their new being, it remains in a state of infant imbecility for four months longer, during which time, though without food, it gradually acquires firmness and vigor; and, about the end of May, when the genial season has returned, it works its way to the light and warmth of the summer's atmosphere, where, from living for four years under ground, and feeding only on roots, it buzzes joyfully through the mild air, having the sweetest vegetables for its banquet, and the dew of evening for its drink.

Another insect, allied to the beetle kind, is still more remarkable in its instincts, if any thing in this world of wonders can be said to have the preeminence: I allude to the nut-weevil, (Curculio nucum.) Dr. Good has chosen this little creature as an illustration of the absurdity of the hypothesis, which makes instinct to depend on imitation, education, or reasoning; and, assuredly, even though the supposition were not contradicted by almost every habit and pursuit of the inferior creation, this instance might of itself be sufficient to show the untenable nature of the theory. The nut-weevil, "with a finished knowledge of the art," as Dr. Good expresses it, "singles out a nut, in the month of August, while its shell is yet soft and penetrable; and, having prepared to deposit her eggs, pierces it with her proboscis, and then, turning round accurately, drops an egg into the minute perforation. Having accomplished this, she passes on, pierces another nut, drops another egg, and so continues, till she has exhausted her whole stock. The nut continues

to grow; the egg is soon hatched; the young maggot finds its food already ripened, and in waiting for it; and, about the time of its full growth, falls with the mature nut to the ground, and at length, when its provision here is exhausted, creeps out, by gnawing a circular hole in its side. It then burrows under the surface of the ground, where it continues dormant for eight months; at the termination of which, it casts its skin, becomes a chrysalis

I.

17

VII.

of the general shape and appearance of the beetle kind, and, in the beginning of August, throws off the chrysalid investment, creeps to the surface of the ground, finds itself accommodated with wings, becomes an inhabitant of the air, and instantly pursues the very same train of actions to provide for a new progeny, which had been pursued by the parent insect of the year before."

One more example, which I shall notice, of the habits of particular species of the remarkably varied class of beetles, is of a very different kind; and my object, in adverting to it, is, to show another principle, by which the sterility of winter is rendered innoxious to certain animals. We have seen instances in which, among vertebrated as well as invertebrated beings, the expedient of torpidity is resorted to by the Author of Nature, to sustain life, and perhaps enjoyment also, during this rigorous season. But, in the example I am going to produce, there appears to be no need of this suspension of motion and external sensation, as the little creature is able to survive a whole winter, and even much longer, without any food whatever, except what is derived from the atmosphere; and this, indeed, is a property which belongs to various classes of the invertebrated genus. The account is taken from the communication of a writer in the Philosophical Transactions :-" On the removal of a large leaden cistern, I observed, at the bottom of it, black beetles. One of the largest I threw into a cup of spirits,-it being the way of killing and preparing insects for my purpose. In a few minutes, it appeared to be quite dead. I then shut it up in a box, about an inch and a half in diameter, and, throwing it into a drawer, thought no more of it for two months; when, opening the box, I found it alive and vigorous, though it had no food all the time, nor any more air than it could find in so small a box, whose cover shut very close. A few days before, a friend had sent me three or four cockroaches. These I had put under a large glass; I put my beetle among them, and fed them with green ginger, which they ate greedily; but he would never taste it, for the five weeks they lived there. The cockroaches would avoid the beetle, and

seemed frightened at his approach; but he usually stalked along, not at all regarding whether they came in his way or not. During the two years and a half that I have kept him, he has neither ate nor drank.

"How, then, has he been kept alive? Is it by the air? There are particles in this, which supply a growth to some species of plants, as sempervivum, orpine, and house-leek. May not the same or like particles supply nourishment to some species of animals? In the amazing plan of Nature, the animal, vegetable, and mineral kingdoms are not separated from each other by wide distances; indeed, their boundaries differ from each other by such minute and insensible degrees, that we cannot find out certainly where the one begins, or the other ends. As the air, therefore, nourishes some plants, so it may nourish some animals; otherwise, a link would seem to be wanting in the mighty chain of beings. It is certain, chameleons and snakes can live many months without any visible sustenance, and probably not merely by their slow digestion, but rather by means of particles contained in the air, as the beetle did; yet, doubtless, in its natural state, it used more substantial food. So the plants above-mentioned thrive best with a little earth, although they flourish a long time, and send forth branches and flowers, when they are suspended in the air. Even in the exhausted receiver, after it had been there half an hour, it seemed perfectly unconcerned, walking about as briskly as ever; but, on the admission of the air, it seemed to be in a surprise for a minute."

It is impossible not to view, with wonder and admiration, the various ways in which animal life is sustained, sometimes even under circumstances which, arguing from ordinary analogies, would seem to insure its destruction. I have already alluded to the power possessed by some insects' eggs to resist extreme cold; and, before passing to the hybernation of higher species, I shall conclude this paper by remarking, that there are some very minute kinds of animalcules, the germs of which seem capable of resisting the extremes both of heat and cold. If the paste of flour, which has been boiled ever so long