THE WORM. 



820 



manner; and though it seems to seize the 

 little animal that comes to annoy it, yet, in 

 reality, only closes mechanically upon it, and 

 this enclosure neither contributes to its pre- 

 servation nor its defence. Bat it is very dif- 

 ferent with insects even of the lowest order; 

 the earth-worm not only contracts, but hides 

 itself in the earth, and escapes with some 

 share of swiftness from its pursuers. The 

 polypus hides its horns ; the star-fish con- 

 tracts its arms upon the appearance even of 

 distant dangers; they not only hunt for their 

 food, but provide for their safety ; and how- 

 ever imperfectly they may be formed, yet 

 still they are in reality placed many degrees 

 above the highest vegetable of the earth, and 

 are possessed of many animal functions as 

 well as those that are more elaborately formed. 

 But though these be superior to plants, 

 they are far beneath their animated fellows 

 of existence. In the class of zoophytes, we 

 may place all those animals which may be 

 propagated by cuttings ; or, in other words, 

 which, if divided into two or more parts, each 

 part in time becomes a separate and perfect 

 animal ; the head shoots forth a tail, and, on 

 the contrary, the tail produces a head; some 

 of these will bear dividing but into two parts, 

 such is the earth-worm ; some may be divided 

 into more than two, and of this kind are 



many of the star-fish; others still may he cut 

 into a thousand parts, each becoming a per- 

 fect animal ; they may be turned inside out, 

 like the finger of a glove ; they mav be 

 moulded into all manner of shapes, yet still 

 their vivacious principle remains, still every 

 single part becomes perfect in its kind, and, 

 after a few days' existence, exhibits all the 

 arts and industry of its contemptible parent! 

 We shall therefore divide zoophytes accord- 

 ing to their several degrees of perfection, 

 namely, into Worms, Star-fish, and Polypi ; 

 contenting ourselves with a short review of 

 those nauseous and despicable creatures, 

 that excite our curiosity chiefly by their im- 

 perfections : it mast not be concealed, how- 

 ever, that much has of late been written on 

 this part of natural history. A new mode of 

 animal prodtiction, could not fail of exciting 

 not only the curiosity, but the astonishment 

 of every philosopher: many found their 

 favourite systems totally overthrown by the 

 discovery ; and it was not without a wordy 

 struggle, that they gave up what had former- 

 ly been their pleasure and their pride. At 

 last, however, conviction became too strong 

 for argument; and a question, which owed 

 its general spread rather to its novelty than 

 to its importance, was given up in favour of 

 the new discovery. 



CHAPTER CXCVIL 



OF WORMS. 



THE first in the class of zoophytes, are 

 animals of the worm kind, which being en- 

 tirely destitute of feet, trail themselves along 

 upon the ground, and find themselves a re- 

 treat under the earth, or in the water. As 

 these, like serpents, have a creeping motion, 

 so both, in general, go under the common 

 appellation of reptiles ; a loathsome, noxious, 

 malignant tribe, to which man by nature, as 

 well as by religion, has the strongest antipa- 

 thy. But though worms, as well as serpents, 

 are mostly without feet, and have been 

 doomed to creep along the earth on their 



bellies, yet their motions are Very different. 

 The serpent, as has been said before, having 

 a back-bone, which it is incapable of con- 

 tracting, bends its body into the form of a 

 bow, and then shoots forward from the tail: 

 but it is very different with the worm, ivl'ich 

 has a power of contracting or lengthening 

 itself at will. There is a spiral muscle, that 

 runs round its whole body, from the hend to 

 the tail, somewhat resembling a wire wound 

 round a walking-cane, which when slipped 

 oflT, and one end extended and held fast, will 

 bring the other nearer to it ; in this manner 

 5 Y* 



