INTEREST OF THE SCIENCE. 49 



influence over persons in advanced life, and devoted to pursuits 

 which it would be supposed were little calculated to leave room 

 for any enthusiasm on behalf of insects. la one case an erudite 

 black-letter friend of ours, who has recently been exploring, 

 and with good results, among the Syriac MSS. of the British 

 Museum, was so delighted with the book, on dipping into a 

 copy which accidentally fell in his way, that he straightway pur- 

 chased one for himself, read it with avidity, and has since be- 

 come a most attentive student of insect life. The other 

 instance was that of one of our most popular metropolitan 

 clergymen, who, having had occasion to refer to the book for the 

 elucidation of some passage of Scripture relating to insects, was 

 so deeply interested in what he read, that he publicly recom- 

 mended the work from the pulpit, with a warmth of commenda- 

 tion which somewhat surprised his hearers. The truth is, that, 

 to a person who has never before given attention to the subject, 

 the reading of Kirby and Spence opens the eyes to a new world 

 of interest and beauty, which appears to be only the more won- 

 derful from the circumstance that it has been so long unheeded. 



There can be no doubt that one of the great attractions of 

 entomology lies in the fact, that it thus invests with an attri- 

 bute of wonder the most common and familiar objects. The 

 little creatures that have crossed our path a hundred times, and 

 which we have before regarded merely as so many sources of 

 injury or annoyance, all at once become transformed into objects 

 of great interest, astonishing us by the variety and beauty of their 

 structure, and, at the same time, exciting our admiration by the 

 wonderful instincts with which they are endowed. It is a great 

 advantage, moreover, in the study of this science, that the 

 objects of investigation are everywhere accessible. No one 

 need lack the opportunity of observing and studying the habits 

 and history of some members of the insect tribes. Much may 

 be done without stepping beyond one's own threshold ; and the 

 possession of a garden, even though it be no bigger than the 

 extraordinary six-feet-square enclosures so designated, which 

 one sometimes sees attached to suburban Cockney cottages, 

 opens up to investigation more wonders than most men would 

 be able to explore in half a lifetime. Nor is it merely in verify- 

 ing the observations of others that the beginner in the study 

 may employ himself. There is no branch of natural history in 



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