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Curious Insects

UGE animals expecting from them. Among insects in forests and there are evidently architects, masons, jungles are no upholsterers, paper-makers, joiners, pastemore wonder- board makers and hydraulic engineers. ful than little Others dislike work and are veritable tribes of in- pirates, always engaged in war and sects. pillage.

To a mar- We find also in this class extremes of vellous delica- size and strength. One gigantic Beetle, cy of organiza- such as, for instance, the Goliath, may tion insects join a still exceed the size of the straight-beaked more marvellous intelli- humming-birds, which he would pitilessly gence. The perfection strangle in his claws if he caught them of their tools would lead us to suppose in his path; while another insect may be them capable of executing works of so small, so calculated to escape notice, boundless variety; it is these that have that we only discover it by the aid of a been designated the architecture of in- magnifying-glass. sects. In fact, these minute creatures Some insects again are remarkable from often rear constructions of an elegance the strangeness of their aspect, the breasts and size which we should be far from of which are studded with points, plates, or most fantastic knobs, which transform | China, where they are made into trinkets them into so many monstrosities. On for women, such as pins and ear-drops. looking at some of them one might take A laborious task is performed by an them for an insect masquerade, a verit- insect, by no means uncommon in some able sport of Nature, a collection of freaks. localities, called the Burying Beetle. A So much was the old entomologist Geof- foreign naturalist had often remarked froy struck with their form, that he gave that dead moles, when laid upon the them the name of "little devils." One ground and especially if upon loose cannot really conceive what purpose so earth, were almost sure to disappear in many fantastic appendages, so embarrass- the course of two or three days, and often ing to their figure and movements, can in twelve hours. To ascertain the cause serve among these fragile tribes, for they he placed a mole on one of the beds of are all of the smallest dimensions! his garden. It had disappeared by the If anything in insects surpasses the third morning; and on digging where it