156 MEMOIR ON ANIMAL COTTON. 



They are bold and lively : they have four wings. 

 Their antennae are long and vibrating, then' belly hangs 

 by a very fine thread : there are iome that have a tail, 

 and others that do not {hew it. Afterwards 1 iatisfied 

 myfelf that they feed upon fmall infeds that appear to be 

 of the family of Acarns. Thofe indications appeared to 

 me fufficient to be fatisfied that they belong to the family 

 of the ichneumon. 



Obfcrvations on Animal Cotton. 



I have often held in my hand that cotton fhell or wrap- 

 per. Its whitenefs is dazzling. As foon as the flies have 

 quitted the cocoon, it may be ufed without any prepara- 

 tory precaution. It is made up of the pureft and tineft 

 cotton. 



I call it cotton becaufe it is id'io-ele£lric and is pervious 

 to the eledtric fluid. 



I add to this denomination the epithet animal^ in con- 

 tra-diftinflion to common cotton, which may henceforth 

 be called vegetable cotton^ fo that the two fpecies may be 

 diflinguiflied from each other by their names, as they 

 are by their origin, although they are very nearly related 

 to each other in their eff'efts. 



It is to be obferved, that what might be called cob-web 

 in the covering of the fly-carrier, or fmall flocks of filk 

 which are probably intended to fhelter the animal from 

 the rain, is far fuperior to what is called ferrit before, 

 and Jleet Jilk after the preparation of the finer filk. 

 There is no refufe, no inferior quality in animal-cotton. 

 Every thing in it is as fine and beautiful as can be ima- 

 gined. 



It is pofl^ible, if we may form a judgment by analogy, 

 that medicine, which has extradled from filk what is cal- 

 led RngliJIo drops ^ a remedy to which the grcateft efiicacy 



is 



