402 Mr. Marsuam’s Account of 
yard of the arsenal at Toulon. Many years since a row of the 
Lombardy poplar was planted on the border of a foot path 
leading to the Dog and Duck in St. George's Fields, and soon 
afterwards two of the D. 9-maculata of Ent. Brit. were taken from 
the trunks of those trees ; but I have not heard that any more of 
the same species have been taken in Great Britain. 
- The destructive property of these insects to timber is now 
evident: and the length of time that this animal lay concealed 
strengthens an opinion which I have, from several causes, long 
entertained, that, by the dispensation of Providence, nothing 
once created shall be entirely lost; but, that although a series 
of unfavourable seasons may succeed each other, so as to de- 
stroy the greatest part of many animals, yet a remnant shall 
remain to propagate and continue the species. In confirmation. 
of this remark I shall mention one instance, which occurred to 
my friend William Jones, Esq..of Chelsea, and which I do not 
recollect to have seen published. This gentleman in one of his 
entomological excursions took a female of the Phalena Bombya 
mendica, which laida number of eggs that produced thirty-six cater- 
pillars: all of these fed, spun their cases, and went into the pupa 
state in a regular manner: but at the proper season only twelve 
came ‘out in their perfect state; and as this was no uncommon 
circumstance he concluded that the rest were dead. To his great 
astonishment however, the. next. season twelve more made their 
appearance, and the following year the remainder burst into life, 
equally perfect with the foregoing. How is this extraordinary 
fact to be accounted for, except by the abovementioned supposi- 
tion? They all fed alike, spun up about the same time, were 
equally exposed to the same atmosphere of heat and cold, and 
yet the result was so widely different. The question I am 
aware 
