ORDER IV. MOTHS AND BUTTERFLIES. 207 



meadows, and forest?. He might be even so stupid as not 

 to know what was wanting, and yet he would feel the loss 

 of something to make up its perfection. Besides, these in- 

 sects are directly useful, or should be made so, as we have 

 before shown, by being one of the best channels through 

 which to imprint upon the minds of the young an indelible 

 impression of many of the most important facts in history, 

 as well as to impart a thorough knowledge of geography, 

 botany, drawing, and painting. 



But aside from their moral or intellectual use, the butter- 

 flies of this genus, in their caterpillars, furnish an abundant 

 supply of good food for the birds, and the excrements of 

 their caterpillars, when dried and dissolved in water, make 

 a most excellent dye-stuff, like those of the large hawk- 

 moths. 



The caterpillars of all the Knights, when touched, thrust 

 forth from their necks a pair of soft, orange-colored horns 

 (tentacula), which emit a fetid smell, and are probably de- 

 signed as a means of defense against the attacks of other 

 animals. These caterpillars are either smooth or furnished 

 with fleshy warts, and .they live on several different species 

 of plants. Their metamorphosis into cocoons is accom- 

 plished in the same manner as that of the preceding genera. 

 One of the most common of these Knights is 



The ASTERIAS (Papilio Astcrias), represented in Fig. 30, 

 with its caterpillar (Fig. 29), is quite large and handsome, 

 and is frequently seen in all parts of the Union during the 

 whole summer. It has black fore wings, bordered with a 

 double row of yellow dots ; its hind wings are also black, 

 and have a double row of yellow dots, between which arc 

 seven blue spots ; and at their lower extremity is ", swallow- 

 tail. The Asterias always deposits her eggs upon some of 

 the umbelliferous plants, on those whose flower-stalks issue 

 from one common centre, such as carrots, parsnep, celery, 

 coriander, cicuta, anise, fennel, parsley, etc. Plence the cat- 



