two hundred eggs in one year ; although it may be, 

 that not one chick is hatched out of all these. The 

 design of the Author of nature is plain : not barely to 

 preserve the species, but at the same time to provide 

 man and other animals \vith an excellent food. So 

 his intention in the fertility of a tortoise is not barely 

 to continue that species, but to accommodate a num. 

 ber of other animals with food convenient for them. 



But whence could arise the common opinion con* 

 ccrning the generation of soles ? Namely, that they 

 are produced from a kind of shrimps or prawns? A 

 French gentleman being determined to try, put a large 

 quantity of prawns into a tub about three feet wide* 

 filled with sea-water. At the end of twelve or thirteen 

 days, he saw there eight or ten little soles, which grew 

 by degrees. He repeated the experiment several times, 

 and always found little soles ; afterwards he put some 

 coles and prawns together in one tub, and in another 

 soles aK ne. In both the soles spawned ; but there 

 were no little soles, only in the tub where the prawns 

 were. 



But how can prawns be of use toward producing 

 soles? Farther observations cleared up this. When 

 shrimps or prawns are just taken out of the sea, you 

 may discern between their feet many little bladders, 

 which are strongly fastened to their stomach, >y a 

 kind of glue. It'you open these bladders gently, you 

 ste a sort of cmbrios, which viewed with a microscope, 

 have all the appearance of soles. 



Now here lies the mystery. These are the eggs or 

 Spawn of soles, which in order to hatch are fastened 

 to the shrimps or prawns; like many plants and ani- 

 mals which do not grow oc receive nourishment, but 

 upon other plants and animals. The prawns there, 

 fore are the foster. mothers of soles during their first 

 infancy. And this has occasioned many to imagine 

 they were their real mothers. 



The coming of certain kinds of fish in shoals to cer* 



