16 INSECT ARCHITECTURE. 



world, and playing its part there under so many dif- 

 ferent masks ?" The ancients were so struck with 

 the transformations of the butterfly, and its revival 

 from a seeming temporary death, as to have consi- 

 dered it an emblem of the soul, the Greek word 

 •4^vx,^ signifying both the soul and a butterfly ; and 

 it is for this reason that we find the butterfly intro- 

 duced into their allegorical sculptures as an emblem 

 of immortality. Trifling, therefore, and perhaps con- 

 temptible, as to the unthinking may seem the study 

 of a butterfly, yet when we consider the art and me- 

 chanism displayed in so minute a structure, — the 

 fluids circulating in vessels so small as almost to 

 escape the sight — the beauty of the wings and 

 covering — and the manner in which each part is 

 adapted for its peculiar functions, — we cannot but 

 be struck with wonder and admiration, and allow, 

 with Paley, that " the production of beauty was as 

 much in the Creator's mind in painting a butterfly 

 as in giving symmetry to the human form," 



A collection of insects is to the true naturalist what 

 a collection of medals is to the accurate student of 

 history. The mere collector, who looks only to the 

 shining wings of the one, or the green rust of the 

 other, derives little knowledge from his pursuit. But 

 the cabinet of the entomologist becomes rich in the 

 most interesting subjects of contemplation, when 

 he regards it in the genuine spirit of scientific 

 inquiry. What, for instance, can be so delightful 

 as to examine the wonderful variety of structure in 

 this portion of the creation ; and, above all, to trace 

 the beautiful gradations by which one species runs 

 into another. Their differences are so minute, that an 

 unpractised eye would proclaim their identity ; and 

 yet, when the species are separated, and not very 

 distantly, they become visible even to the common 

 observer. It is in examinations such as these that 



