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volves upon the insect, which, unfulfilled, would 

 leave the world at its death with one link in the 

 chain of creation broken off, this is, to make 

 provision for the continuance of its species. We 

 have already said, that insects, as a general rule, 

 have been, no doubt in wisdom, destined to 

 deposit their eggs not knowing what is to come 

 forth of them, and never enjoying that happiness 

 which is granted to many other beings, the hap- 

 piness of parental love. Some most interesting 

 exceptions to this rule will have also been men- 

 tioned, in which a mother's love for her young has 

 been exemplified in a remarkable manner. 



Yet, though denied this pleasure and privilege, 

 the mother-insect exercises, as we have before 

 seen, all the care and forethought of the most 

 affectionate parent, in depositing its eggs, and in 

 making such arrangements as will be most con- 

 ducive to the happiness and well-being of its 

 future progeny. We can scarcely say that in 

 this it shows that it possesses anything like such 

 a feeling as that of a parent towards its child. 

 It takes the wonderful precautions, and performs 

 the singular actions, which have been already 

 in part recorded in our first chapter, in all 



