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The Scorpion (Their flaming crests above)

Their flaming crests above the waves they shew, Their bellies seem to burn the seas below; Their speckled tails advance to steer their course, And on the sounding shore the flying billows force.

And now the strand and now the plain they held; Their ardent eyes with bloody streaks are fill'd; Their nimble tongues they brandish'd as they came, And lick'd their hissing jaws that sputter'd flame.

Dryden.

Of all the classes of noxious insects, the scorpion is the most terrible. Its shape is hideous; its size among the insects is enormous; and its sting is generally fatal. Happily for Britain, the scorpion is entirely unknown among us. In several parts of the continent of Europe, it is too well known, though it seldom grows above four inches long; but in the F