Metamorphoses of Insects, 271 



Non v' accorgete voi, che noi siam' vermi, 

 Nati a forniar l' angelica farfalla ? * 



The Egyptian fable, as it is supposed to be, of Cupid and Psyche, 

 seems built upon this foundation. " Psyche," says an ingenious 

 and learned writer, " means in Greek the human soul ; and it 

 means also a butterfly, f of which apparently strange double 

 sense the undoubted reason is that a butterfly was a very ancient 

 symbol of the soul : from the prevalence of this symbol, and the 

 consequent coincidence of the names, it happened that the Greek 

 sculptors frequently represented Psyche as subject to Cupid in the 

 shape of a butterfly; and that even when she appears in their 

 works under the human form, we find her decorated with the lio-ht 

 and filmy wings of that gay insect." | 



The following beautiful little poem falls in so exactly with the 

 subject I have been discussing, that I cannot resist the temptation 

 I feel to copy it for you, especially as I am not aware that it has 

 appeared anywhere but in a newspaper : — - 



THE BUTTERFLY'S BIRTH-DAY, 



BY THE AUTHOR OF " THE BUTTERFLy's BALL." 



The shades of night were scarcely fled ; 



The air was mild, the winds were still ; 

 And slow the slanting sun-beams spread 



O'er wood and lawn, o'er heath and hill : 



From fleecy clouds of pearly hue 

 Had dropt a short but balmy shower, 



That hung like gems of morning dew 

 On every tree and every flower : 



And from the blackbird's mellow throat 

 Was pnur'd so loud and long a swell, 



As echoed with responsive note 

 From mountain side and shadow dell. 



* Do you not perceive that we are caterpillars, born to form the angelic 

 butterfly ? 



f It is worthy of remark that in the north and west of England the moths 

 that fly into candles are called mules (souls,) perhaps from the old notion 

 that the souls of the dead fly about at night in search of light. For the 

 aame reason, probably, the common people in Germany call them ghosts 

 (geistchen.) 



X fare's Essays, i. 101, 102. 



