( 1^7 ) 



depofit its young, on the leaf or fruit of a tree, which young one, 

 when depofited, or when hatched from the egg, may make its way 

 into the leaf or fruit, and there find nourifhment to promote its 

 growth. 



It is an eftabliflied axiom among Philofophers, that, no- 

 thing can come of nothing ; how then can a being or fubftance void 

 of motion, produce a creature endued with motion and life ? And 

 this is certain, that, whenever we difledl or e\amine fmall animals, 

 the wonderful fabrick of their bodies, both externally and internally, 

 ftrikes us with aftonifliment. 



As to the opinion, that venomous animals do fhed their poifon on 

 fruits or leaves, I do not fee that this can be faid of the Scorpion, nor 

 that poifonous ferpent called the Rattle Snake, neither of the Spider, 

 nor the Indian Millepeda, becaufe, as far as I can underftand, they 

 have not power to hurt, by fpitting or voiding their poifon on any 

 ©bje6l, becaufe they cannot caft it to any diftance, but thev do 

 mifchief, by injefting it into a wound made in the flefh. But, it is 

 poffible for the Frog and Toad to infe6l plants with their venom, for 

 I have more than once obferved thofe animals, when irritated, ejeft a 

 kind of water, in a ftream, from their pofteriors, which water poiTelTes 

 an extraordinary corrofive acrimony. This propertv was firft expe- 

 rienced here, by a refpe:table perfon, who, in fifliing for Jack, ufed 

 young frogs for a bait ; and once, while he was fixing a frog to his 

 hook, the animal on a fudden fcattered a little of this liquor into his 

 eye, which produced an excruciating pain in the part. 



I have often taken notice of a large dog, who was very eager in the 

 purfuit of mice, which he would fwallow whole, without chewing. He 

 w as alfo very fond of hunting frogs and toads, and, when he had killed 

 them, by biting, he ufed to throw them away ; but at thofe times his 

 mouth was entirely covered with froth or foam, which I attributed to 

 the liquor emitted by them. This was mofl: particularly the cafe, 



