}30jnilar JBirttauary of 



gtatttrc. 619 



worm. What warmth and comfort does it 

 afford to us ! How useful, convenient, and 

 elegant, is the clothing we derive from it 1 

 But this is not all. Let us, for one moment, 

 consider how many thousands of persons are 

 indebted to it for almost their very existence, 

 in consequence of the employment it affords 

 to man in nearly every country of the known 

 world. There is, however, another striking 

 and interesting pcculiarityaUending the Silk- 

 worm. It is this ; that while the caterpillars 

 of all the other tribes of moths and butter- 

 flies, when they have arrived at a certain 

 state of maturity, show a restless disposition, 

 and wander about and hide themselves in a 

 variety of places in order to spin their co- 

 coons, preparatory to their making their 

 escape as Moths, &c., the Caterpillar of the 

 Silkworm, on the contrary, is content to 

 remain stationary in the open tray, or box, 

 in which it may be placed. After consuming 

 its immediate supply of mulberry leaves, it 

 waits for a further quantity ; and when the 

 period arrives for spinning its cocoon, instead 

 of showing any migratory disposition, it 

 seems to place itself with confidence under 

 the care of man to provide it with a suitable 

 place for its convenience and protection. In 

 the fly or moth state, the female is quite 

 Incapable of flight ; and the male, although 

 of a much lighter make, and more active, 

 can fly but very imperfectly. This latter 

 circumstance insures to us the eggs for the 

 following season, thus completing the adap- 

 tation of the insect in its different stages to 

 the purposes it is destined to fulfil for our 

 advantage. To my mind this striking pecu- 

 liarity in the habits of the Silkworm illus- 

 trates the care and kindness of the Almighty, 

 in thus making an apparently insignificant 

 insect the means of so many important bene- 

 fits to man." 



SILURID^E. A family of Malacoptery- 

 gious fishes, of which the genus Silunm is 

 the type. They are chiefly distinguished 

 by the want of true scales, having merely a 

 naked skin, or large osseous plates. The 

 species included in this group are mostly 



river-fish, of considerable size, inhabiting 

 warm climates. Many of them have the 

 first ray of the pectoral fin very strong and 

 bony ; and the fish can, at pleasure, lay it 

 flat on the body, or keep it fixed in a per- 

 pendicular direction, in which case it be- 

 comes a formidable weapon, capable of in- 

 flicting very severe wounds. 



The only known European species of the 

 Stiuridtx is the SILURUS GLANIS, a fish of very 



large size, found in the lakes of Switzerland, > 

 the Danube, the Wolga, the Elbe, and other | 

 large rivers in the north of Europe ; as also 

 in many of the fresh water* of Asia and 

 Africa. It sometimes grows to the length of ; 

 from six to eight feet, and to the weight of 

 SOOlbs. The head is broad and flat ; the 

 body thick and of a lengthened form, with 

 the abdomen very thick and short ; the 

 mouth very large and wide, and on each 

 side of the upi>er lip is a long barbule ; the 

 jaws are circular, the lower one the longest, 

 and both furnished with numerous small in- 

 curved teeth. The back is round, of a dark 

 green ; paler below ; and the whole body 

 covered with dark irregulary-formed spoU. ; 

 Mr. Yarrell observes, that " the Silurus is 



represented as sluggish in its habits, and a 



_ . -y y !y'- 



wait for it, in a manner somewhat similar to 



i sluggis 

 , taking 



slow swimmer, taking its pre 



lying in 



the Angler (Lojihiut) ; hiding itself in holes 

 or soft mud, and apparently depending upon 

 the accidental approach of fishes or other 

 animals, of which its long and numerous 

 barbules may be at the same time the source 

 of attraction to the victims, and the means 

 of warning to the devourer. From its own 

 formidable size, it can have but few enemies 

 in the fresh water ; and from them its dark 

 colour, in addition to its habit of secreting 

 itself either in holes or soft mud. would be 

 a sufficient security. In spring tne male and 

 female may be seen together, about the 

 middle of the day, near the banks or edges 

 of the water, but soon return to their usual 

 retreats. The ova when deposited are green ; 

 and the young are excluded between the 

 sixteenth and nineteenth days. The flesh of 

 the Silurtis is white, fat, and agreeable to 

 many persons as food, particularly the part 

 of the lish near the tail ; but on account of ] 

 its being luscious, soft, and difficult to digest, 

 it is not recommended to those who have 

 weak stomachs. In the northern countries 

 of Europe, the flesh is preserved by drying, 

 and the fat i - used as lard." 



The ELKCTUICAI, Si Limns, or MALAFTE- 

 nuiius, which inhabits the Nile, the Senegal, 

 and other African rivers, is froin ten to fif- ! 

 teen inches in length : the head very broad 

 and depressed ; on the upper lip two cirri, 

 on the lower four ; teeth small and numerous. 

 It appears to derive the power of giving 

 electrical shocks from a particular tissue ! 

 situated between the skin of the sides and 

 the muscles. It possesses this electric or 



falvanic power, however, in a much slighter 

 egree than the Torpedo. 



SILVER-FISH. A well-known small 

 species of the Carp tribe. [See GOLD-FISH.] 



SILVER-LINE [MOTHS]. A name ap- 

 plied by collectors to Moths of the genus 

 llyluphila [CiiLOEOPHORA]. 



SILVER-RINGLET [BUTTERFLY]. A 

 name applied by collectors to Butterflies of 

 the species Hipparchia, hero. 



SIMIA. The generic name applied by 

 Limurus to all the different species of quad- 

 rumanous Mammals, except the Lemurs. 

 They are divided into numerous sub-genera; 



