538 THE COMMON LOUSE. 



their manner of living, and tbeir skilful and diligent labor ; bnt they 

 are by no means the same kind of insects. They certainly not only 

 equal but excel Ants, Bees, Wasps and Beavers in the art of building, 

 and, if we take into account the comparative size of the architects, we 

 find, on comparing the hillocks constructed by these insects with the 

 most colossal works of njau, that the result is calculated to awaken in 

 us sentiments of humility. Ti)e great pyramid of Cheops in its original 

 state, before the base became covered by the accumulation of sand, was 

 about four hundred and eighty feet in height. It was, therefore, about 

 ninety-six times the height of a man, assuming the average stature of 

 Africans to \ye five feet. The hillock which the termites raise ave about 

 a thousand times higher than the insects which construct them, so that 

 these edifices of tiie White Ants are relatively many times higher than 

 the loftiest of our monuments. 



These artificial mounds are surprisingly strong ; they are hut of small 

 -circumference, com j)ared with their heiglit, and when finished are pointed 

 at the top, so that you might imagine, to look at them, they could be 

 blown down by a violent wind ; but, in reality, they are proof against 

 most assaults. 



While they are still in the course of construction, and when their 

 domes are accessible to the wild bulls, these animals may often be seen 

 standing on their summits as sentinels to the rest of the herd. In 

 gome regions their magnitude, regularity, and numbers, make them 

 resemble an assemblage of negro huts. 



OF THE LOUSE TRIBE. 



Ltce live on animal juices, which they extract from living bodies 

 by means of their sucker. The larva and jjupa resemble the perfect 

 insect. 



The mouth in these animals is formed by a retractile recurved 

 sucker, without a proboscis. There are no feelers, and the antennae 

 Hre about the length of the thorax. The abdomen is sotnewhat flat- 

 tened; and tlie legs, which are six in number, are formed not for 

 leaping, but for running and climbing. 



THE COMMON LOUSE. 



When we examine the human I.ouse with the Ji'u:roscope, its 

 external deformity excites disgust. The forepart of its head is some- 

 what oblong, while the hind part is rounded. The skin is hard anc 

 transparent, with here and there a few bristly hairs. On each side 

 of its head are two antenme or horns, jointed, and covered with 

 bristly hair; and behind these are the eyes, which are large and 

 black. The neck is short, and the breast divided into three parts; 

 en each side of which are three leg-s, armed at the end with small 

 claws, by which the animal is enabled to lay hold of different objects. 

 The trunk, or proboscis, is generally concealed in its tube: this is 

 very sharp, and furnished towards its upper part, with a few reversed 



