42 SCARAB^ID^ — DUNG-BEETLES. 



some divine power in them : which ceremoniall devotion 

 of theirs, Appion g^iveth a subtile and curious reason of; 

 for he doth collect, that there is some resemblance between 

 the operations and works of the Sun, and this flie; and this 

 he setteth abroad, for to colour and excuse his country- 

 men."^ 



Dr. Molyneux, in the conclusion of his article on the 

 swarms of beetles that appeared in Ireland in 1688, makes 

 the following allusion to the worship of the Scarabaeus by 

 the Egyptians: "It is also more than probable that this 

 same destructive Beetle (Hedge-chafer — Melontha vulgaris) 

 we are speaking of, was that very kind of Scarabaeus thia 

 idolatrous Egyptians of old had in such high veneration, 

 as to pay divine worship to it. For nothing can be sup- 

 posed more natural, than to imagine a Nation addicted to 

 Polytheism, as the Egyptians were, in a Country fre- 

 quently suffering great Mischief and Scarcity from Swarms 

 of devouring Insects, should from a strong Sense and Fear 

 of Evil to come (the common Principle of Superstition and 

 Idolatry) give sacred worship to the visible Authors of 

 these their Sufferings, in hopes to render them more pro- 

 pitious for the future. Thus 'tis allowed on all hands, that 

 the same People adored as a God the ravenous Crocodile of 

 the River Nile ; and thus the Romans, though more polite 

 and civilized in their Idolatry, Febrem ad minas nocendam 

 venerabantur, eamqiie variis Templis extructis colebant, 

 says Valerius Maximus, L. 2, c. 5."^ 



It is curious to observe how the reason is affected by cir- 

 cumstances. The mind of Dr. Molyneux being long engaged 

 upon the destruction caused by insects, worked itself insen- 

 sibly into certain grooves, out of which it was afterward im- 

 possible to act. The same maybe remarked of Mr. Henry 

 Baker, as appears from his article, " On a Beetle that lived 

 three years without Food." In conclusion, this gentleman 

 says, "As the Egyptians were a wise and learned people, 

 we cannot imagine they would show so much regard to a 

 creature of such a mean appearance (as the Beetle) with- 

 out some extraordinary reason for so doing. And is it not 

 possible they might have discovered its being able to subsist 



1 Pliny, Nat. Hist., xxx 11 ; Holland, ii. 395. K. 



3 Phil. Trans. Abridg., ii. 785; Gent. Mag., xix. 264-5. 



