140 Miscellaneous. 



ground in the egg state by the limbs in which their nests are con- 

 tained, but spontaneously make the perilous descent immediately 

 after they are hatched, without any clue, like that of the canker-worm, 

 to carry them in safety through the air and break the force of their 

 fall. The instinct which impels them thus fearlessly to precipitate 

 themselves from the trees, from heights of which they can have formed 

 no conception, without any experience or knowledge of the result of 

 their adventurous leap, is still more remarkable than that which car- 

 ries the gosling to the water as soon as it is hatched. In those ac- 

 tions that are the result of foresight, of memory, or of experience, 

 animals are controlled by their own reason ; as in those to which 

 they are led by the use of their ordinary senses or by the indulgence of 

 their common appetites, they may be said to be governed by the laws 

 of their organization ; but in such as arise from special and extra- 

 ordinary instincts, we see the most striking proofs of that creative 

 wisdom which has implanted in them an unerring guide, where rea- 

 son, the senses and the appetites would fail to direct them. The 

 manner of the young Cicadas' descent, so different from that of other 

 insects, and seeming to require a special instinct to this end, would 

 be considered incredible perhaps, if it had not been ascertained and 

 repeatedly confirmed by persons who have witnessed the proceeding. 

 On reaching the ground the insects immediately bury themselves in 

 the soil, burrowing by means of their broad and strong fore-feet, 

 which, like those of the mole, are admirably adapted for digging. In 

 their descent into the earth they seem to follow the roots of plants, 

 and are subsequently found attached to those which are most tender 

 and succulent, perforating them with their beaks, and thus imbibing 

 the vegetable juices which constitute their sole nourishment. 



They do not appear ordinarily to descend very deeply into the 

 ground, but remain where roots are most abundant ; and it is pro- 

 bable that the accounts of their having been discovered ten or twelve 

 feet from the top of the ground have been founded on some mistake, 

 or the occurrence of the insects at such a depth may have been the 

 result of accident. The only alteration to which the insects are subject, 

 during the long period of their subterranean confinement, is an in- 

 crease of size, and the more complete development of the four small 

 scale-like prominences on their backs, which represent and actually 

 contain their future wings. 



As the time of their transformation approaches, they gradually as- 

 cend towards the surface, making in their progress cylindrical pas- 

 sages, oftentimes very circuitous, and seldom exactly perpendicular, 

 the sides of which,. according to Dr. Potter, are firmly cemented and 

 varnished so as to be water- proof. These burrows are about five- 

 eighths of an inch in diameter, are filled below with earthy matter 

 removed by the insect in its progress, and can be traced by the colour 

 and compactness of their contents to the depth of from one to two 

 feet, according to the nature of the soil ; but the upper portion to 

 the extent of six or eight inches is empty, and serves as a habitation 

 for the insect till the period for its exit arrives. Here it remains 

 during several days, ascending to the top of the hole in fine weather 



