590 THE TROPICAL WORLD. 



articles, which if they do fiot destroy, at least they soil, as they frequently deposit a 

 drop of their excrement where they settle, and, some way or other, by that means 

 damage what they cannot devour. They fly into the flame of candles, and sometimes 

 into the dishes; are very fond of ink and of oil, into which they are apt to fall and 

 perish, in which case they soon turn most offensively putrid — so that a man might as 

 well sit over the cadaverous body of a large animal as write with the ink in which 

 they have died. They often fly into persons' faces or bosoms, and their legs being 

 armed with sharp spines, the pricking excites a sudden horror not easily described. 

 In old houses they swarm by myriads, making every part filthy beyond description 

 wherever they harbor, which in the daytime is in dark corners, behind clothes, in 

 trnuks, boxes, and, in short, every place where they can lie concealed. In old timber 

 and deal houses, when the family is retired at night to sleep, this insect, among other 

 disagreeable properties, has the power of making a noise which very much resembles 

 a pretty smart knocking with the knuckle upon the wainscoting. The Malta gigantea 

 in the West Indies is, therefore, frequently known by the name of the 'Drummer.' 

 Three or four of these noisy creatures will sometimes be impelled to answer one 

 another, and cause such a drumming noise that none but those who are very good 

 sleepers can rest for them. What is most disagreeable, those who have not gauze 

 curtains are sometimes attacked by them in their sleep ; the sick and dying have their 

 extremities attacked ; and the ends of the toes and fingers of the dead are frequently 

 stripped both of the skin and flesh." 



According to Tschudi, the Cucaracha and Chilicabra — two large species of the 

 cockroach — infest Peru in such numbers as almost to reduce the inhabitants to despair. 

 Greedy, bold, cunning, they force their way into every hut, devour the stores, destroy 

 the clothes, intrude into the beds and dishes, and defy every means that is resorted to 

 for their destruction. Fortunately, they are held in check by many formidable 

 enemies, particularly by a small ant, and a pretty little bird {Troglodytes audax) 

 belonging to the wagtail family, which has some difficulty in mastering the larger 

 cockroaches. It first of all bites off their head, and then devours their body, with the 

 exception of their membranaceous wings. After having finished his repast, the bird 

 hops upon the nearest bush, and there begins his song of triumph. 



Many other insect plagues might be added to the list, but those I have already 

 enumerated suffice to reconcile us to our misty climate, and to diminish our longing 

 for the palm groves of the torrid zone. 



After having described the miseries which the tropical insects inflict upon man- 

 how they suck his blood, destroy his rest, exterminate his cattle, devour the fruits of 

 his fields and orchards, ransack his chests and wardrobes, feast on his provisions, and 

 plague and worry him wherever they can — I turn to the more agreeable task of re- 

 counting their services, and relating the benefits for which he is indebted to them. 



Among the insects which are of direct use to us, the silk-worm {Bomhyx mart) is 

 by far the most important. Originally a native of tropical or sub-tropical China, 

 where the art of making use of its filaments seems to have been discovered at a very 

 early period, it is now reared in countless numbers far and wide over the western 

 world, so as to form a most important feature in the industrial resources of Europe. 

 Thousands of skilful workmen are employed in spinning and weaving its lustrous 



