< ii\i»'I'i:k \\ II. 



()UI)i;U \ II IMI'llillA ( Aristotu:). 



ANTLIATA ( KAHtticita). HALTEKIPTKllA (Cijuitille). 



Tin: <>i.\ lulls characNTistic <>f this ««rJ«'r is the jx^s-vwlon of two witifp only. Mini a j.ur of 

 stuall knohU'tl api>€n>iHU«'S ju.«t bthiiul tlicm, uhirh an-callril futlttm ut poucrt,as in the 

 conunun lly. The wings an- memhrunous ami |>lac«il u|Kjn th»- nipsolliorax, and, when at 

 rest, ri'iuain fxpanili-d as in the Hv.Mi.NontuA ; tliat is. thej an- never folded u|><jU them- 

 selves. Tlio tarsi are five-jointetl. The niouth has a fleshy pruboscis, which is merely a 

 mi^MdiAetl labium. This j>n>l>>scis encloses s*-veral lancet like organs, capable of i>enetniting 

 flesh or the softer parts of vegetables : the mouth is therefore suctorial. In a few genera, 

 u the (EsTRi *, the niouth is closed. The thorax is compact, and the prothorix Ls reiluced 

 to a collar. The wings, which represent the fore pair in otlier four-winged insects, are 

 membranous, nake<l, or rather clothed with scales. The disc is divided into a moderato 

 nunil>er of areolets, by the inosculation or junction of the nervures or veins. 



This onler of insects Is clearly separated from each of the other orders : where some 

 species iH'longing to the Order NtiuoiTi.RA are dejirived of a pair of wings, they may .still 

 be distinguished by the absence of halttrts or balancers. The jaw s of the diptera arc never 

 formed for biting or nipping : so the neuration of the wings of the diptera are <juite dif- 

 ferent fn>ni that in the other orders. 



The size of the individuals comjKjsing this onler may l>e called small; but what is 

 lacking in this resi>ect is more than made up in numlxrs, and this whether we tak« into 

 consideration the number of .sj)ecies, or the vast numl)er of individuals that sometimes 

 swarm together. 



Some of the diptera have domesticated themselves in our dwellings, to the great an- 

 noyance of all good housekee|>ers ; and notwithstanding the brush and the broom is freelj 

 used to drive them away, they seem to entertain no fears of the consequences of returning 

 to their old quarters. Arsenic fly-jwwder, and all the various traps that the ingenuity of 

 man has yet devised, have not thinned the ranks of the housefly. Wherever man goes, the 

 fly follows in his stei>s, and makes a free use of his dwelling whenever the weather with- 

 out becomes uncomfortable. 



