SECTION II, 

 WINGED INSECTS. 



THE FLY. 



of the plagues sent upon the incorrigible Egyptians, consist- 

 ed of a swarm of flies, Exodus viii. 21, 24. The original term em- 

 ployed, is ore&, which the LXX translate by the dog-fly ; and they 

 have been followed by the learned Bochart, and most modern in- 

 terpreters. For a description of this insect, as found in Ethiopia, 

 we are indebted exclusively to Mr. Bruce. 



'This insect is call Zimb; it has not been described by any nat- 

 uralist. It is, iu size, very little larger than a bee, of a thicker pro- 

 portion, and his wings, which are broader than those of a bee, placed 

 separate like those of a fly ; they are of pure gauze, without col- 

 or or spot upon them. The head is large, the upper jaw or lip is 

 sharp, and has at the end of it a strong pointed hair, of about a 

 quarter of an inch long ; the lower jaw has two of these pointed 

 hairs; and this pencil of hairs, when joined together, makes a resist- 

 ance to the finger, nearly equal to that of strong hog's bristles. Its 

 legs are serrated in the inside, and the whole covered with brown 

 hair or down. As soon as this plague appears, and their buzzing 

 is heard, all the cattle forsake their food, and run wildly about the 

 plain, till they die, worn out with fatigue, fright, and hunger. No 

 remedy remains, but to leave the black earth, and hasten down to 

 the sands of Atbara; and there they remain, while the rains last, 

 this cruel enemy never daring to pursue them farther. 



'Though his size be immense as his strength, and his body cov- 

 ered with a thick skin, defended with strong hair, yet even the cam- 

 el is not capable to sustain the violent punctures the fly makes with 

 his pointed proboscis. He must lose no time in removing to the 

 sands of Atbara ; for when once attacked by this fly, his body, head, 

 and legs break out into large bosses, which swell, break, and putri- 

 fy, to the certain destruction of the creature. Even the elephant 

 and rhinoceros, who, by reason of their enormous bulk, and the 

 vast quantity of food and water they daily need, cannot shift to 

 desert and dry places, as the season may require, are obliged to roll 

 themselves in rnud and mire, which, when dry, coats them over 

 like armor, and enables them to stand their ground against this 

 winged assassin ; yet I have found some of these tubercles upon al- 

 most every elephant and rhinoceros that I have seen, and attribute 

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