STUDY XI. 155 



without any addition, or four-naked-winged, as 

 beesj into dipterous, or two- winged, as the com- 

 mon fly ; and into apterous, or winglefs, as the ant. 

 But thefe fix clafTes admit of a multitude of divi- 

 sons and of fubdivifions, which unite fpecies of 

 infects, of forms and inftincts the moft diffimilar ; 

 and feparate a great many others of them which 

 have otherwife a very ftriking analogy among 

 themfelves. 



Whatever may be in this, the order of animals 

 in queftion appears to be particularly attributed to 

 trees. Pliny obferves that ants are Angularly fond 

 of the grains of the cyprefs. He tells us, that they 

 attack the cones which contain them, on their 

 half-opening as they arrive at maturity, and plun- 

 der them to their very laft feed ; and he confiders 

 it as a miracle of Nature, that an infect fo dimi- 

 nutive fhould deftroy the feed of one of the largeft 

 trees in the World. I believe we never mail be 

 able to eftablifh, in the different tribes of infects, 

 a real order, and in the ftudy of them, that plea- 

 fure and utility of which it is fufceptible, but by 

 referring them to the different parts of vegetables. 

 Thus we might refer to the nectars of the flowers, 

 the butterflies and flies which are furnifhed with a 

 probofcis for fipping up their juices ; to their fta- 

 mina, thofe flies which, like the bee, have fpoon- 

 mouths fcooped out in their thighs, lined with 



hair, 



