ORDER II.—BUGS. 87 
opens their petals to the day points them out as the appro- 
priate food to some of those animals whose life or death 
ministers to man! ‘The blooming Cactus not only charms 
the eye of man, and makes the arid desert blossom as the 
rose, but it furnishes food for an insect that lives upon it, 
and grows and dies to clothe man with the same resplen- 
dent dye. 
This insect is the Cochineal, a species of Shield-louse, 
also called Scale Insect, of the genus Coccus, and of the 
order Hemiptera. 
This little insect has a curious history. It was used 
for dyeing the most brilliant and beautiful red and purple 
colors, and was considered a valuable article of commerce, 
from which much money was made, long before it was 
known what the substance was composed of. 
The French Naturalist, Plumier, in 1692 excited the 
ridicule of his nation, and was considered a fool because he 
pronounced the Cochineal to be an insect. But in 1714 
the French Philosopher, Geoffroy, proved the opinion of 
Plumier to be correct. By moistening these supposed 
seeds in vinegar Geoffroy was able to detect the ringlets 
of its body as well as its feet, and accordingly pronounced 
unhesitatingly the Cochineal to be an insect. Ruusscher, 
in Holland, held the same opinion, and was publicly as- 
sailed for it, on account of which he caused the Cochineal 
cultivators to be summoned before the court of Antiguera, 
in the valley of Oaxaca, in Mexico, there to be examined 
with regard to the origin and nature of these creatures. 
The examination proved Ruusscher’s opinion correct, and 
the Cochineal henceforth was considered an insect. This 
was probably the first instance in which an animal was re- 
stored to its natural rights by the decision of a Judicial 
Court.* 
The Cochineal is a natural production of North and 
* See Naturlyke Historie von de Cochenille. Amsterdam, 1729. 
