DUNG-BEETLE. 219 



could odours reach this beetle in such a manner as to rouse 

 so inert an insect into action ! But it is appointed one of 

 the great scavengers of the earth, and marvellously endowed 

 with 230wers of sensation, and means of effecting this pur- 

 pose of its being. Exquisitely fabricated as it is to receive 

 impressions, yet probably it is not more highly gifted than 

 any of the other innumerable creatures that wing their way 

 around us, or creep about our paths, though by this one 

 perceptible faculty, thus ' dimly seen,' it excites our wonder 

 and surprise. How wondrous then the whole ! 



" The perfect cleanliness of these creatures is a very 

 notable circumstance, when we consider that nearly their 

 whole lives are passed in burrowing in the earth, and re- 

 moving nuisances ; yet such is the admirable polish of their 

 coating and limbs, that we very seldom find any soil ad- 

 hering to them. The meloe, and some of the scarabaei, 

 upon first emerging from their winter's retreat, are com- 

 monly found with earth clinging to them ; but the removal 

 of this is one of the first operations of the creature ; and all 

 the beetle race, the chief occupation of which is crawling 

 about the soil, and such dirty employs, are, notwithstanding, 

 remarkable for the glossiness of their covering, and freedom 

 from defilements of any kind. But purity of vesture seems 

 to be a principal precept of nature, and observable through- 

 out creation. Fishes, from the nature of the element in 

 which they reside, can contract but little impurity. Birds 

 are unceasingly attentive to neatness and lustration of their 

 plumage. All the slug race, though covered with slimy 

 matter calculated to collect extraneous things, and reptiles, 

 are perfectly free from soil. The fur and hair of beasts, in 

 a state of liberty and health, is never filthy or sullied with 

 dirt. Some birds roll themselves in dust, and, occasionally, 

 particular beasts cover themselves with mire ; but this is 

 not from any liking or inclination for such things, but to 

 free themselves from annoyances, or to prevent the bites of 

 insects. Whether birds in preening, and beasts in dressing 

 themselves, be directed by any instinctive faculty, we know 

 not ; but they evidently derive pleasure from the operation, 

 and thus this feeling of enjoyment, even if the sole motive, 



