Natural-Historical Collections. 289 



bees, of drones : he describes the singular covering which envelopes the larva of 

 the Phryganea, and speaks of the spiders which carry under the abdomen the cap- 

 sule which contains their eggs. In treating of the animals of a superior order, 

 he makes a very proper distinction between eggs with a hard shell, as those 

 of crocodiles and of tortoises, and eggs with a soft envelope, as those of serpents. 

 He says that serpents, which bring their young into the world alive, have also 

 eggs, but that these eggs are hatched in their insides. He knew perfectly the 

 development of the cliick during incubation, describes it day by day, and speaks 

 of the heart as the first point which appears, of the veins which then extend from 

 the superior to the inferior parts of the body, and of the allantoid vesicle which 

 soon encloses the whole egg. It must be remarked that all these observations 

 were made with the eye alone, and that the slight errors which we find, arise en- 

 tirely from Aristotle not having had the assistance of magnifying glasses. He 

 remarks, in speaking of the eggs of fishes, that the allantoid membrane does not 

 exist in them, nor in those of any animals which respire by branchiae. He ad- 

 mits moreover in fishes, what he allows also to insects, spontaneous generation, 

 and cites, in support of that opinion, facts which appear conclusive, such as the 

 sudden appearance of an immense quantity of little fish, which the Greeks, on 

 account of this supposed origin, named aphia, and to which, in the interior of 

 France, a name is still given which refers to the same idea ; they are there de- 

 signated by the term nonnats, (non nati.) What he says of eels is certainly not 

 exact ; but we ourselves, notwithstanding the labours of SpaUanzani, have yet 

 much to learn with respect to the reproduction of these animals. 



Aristotle examines the changes produced by age in animals and men, and, on 

 this occasion, he gives excellent counsel to mothers. He passes then to the ha- 

 bits of animals, indicating the influence of their modes of life, of external cir- 

 cumstances, of climate, of seasons, and of the medium in which the different 

 species live ; and he mentions the food proper to each. His account of fishes is 

 especially interesting, and would be extremely useful to us, if, when we wish to 

 consult it, we were not frequently stopped, on account of his nomenclature not 

 being weU known. He treats of the influence of temperature on the migration 

 of birds ; speaks of those which migrate ; of the periods of their removal, and of 

 the Older they follow in flying. He speaks also of the migrations of fishes ; of 

 the tunny, of the mackerel, of the pilchard ; and states that legions of fishes enter 

 into and pass out from the Black Sea. He follows them in their route across the 

 Propontis and to the Archipelago. It appears that he had observed them on the 

 coasts of Thrace, and especially at Byzantium. He mentions that the same fish 

 at different periods receives different names ; that, for example, the fish which was 

 known in the Black Sea under the name of cordylus, took at spring the name of 

 pelamis, and at length that of thynnus when it arrived in the Archipelago. He 

 treats of fishes which do not show themselves in the winter ; and also of other 

 animals which appear at certain periods of the year, as the bobac, or Polish mar- 

 mot. He speaks of the diseases of fishes, and he appears to be much better in- 

 formed on this subject than we. In describing the ditterent kinds of industry of 

 animals, he makes known the means by which the frog-fish {Lophius piscatorivs) 

 allures small fish to devour them ; he speaks of the shock which the torpedo gives 

 when it is taken in the hand ; of the manner in which the sepia hides itself from 

 the pursuit of its enemies, by discolouring the water with its ink. He pursues 

 this investigation in the class of insects, and dwells upon some of them, particu- 

 larly on the spiders ; then, passing to the birds, he describes the different me- 

 thods in which they construct their nests ; mentions that there are some species 

 which do not make any ; and, lastly, gives the history of the cuckoo, which lays 

 its eggs in another's nest. 



It may be conceived, from this analysis, how rich and abundant in informa- 

 tion is the History of Animals. There is, nevertheless, in this book a fault which 

 detracts much from its utility to us. Aristotle, like all ancient naturalists, 

 seems to have thought that the language which he spoke must be eternal, and 



