ENTOMOLOGICAL. 83 



The whole earth is covered with them for the space of 

 several leagues. The noise they make in browsing on the 

 trees and herbage may be heard to a great distance, and 

 resembles that of an army foraging in secret. The 

 Tartars themselves are a less destructive enemy than 

 these little animals. One would imagine that fire had 

 followed their progress. Wherever their myriads spread, 

 the verdure of the country disappeared, as if a covering 

 had been removed. Trees and plants, stripped of their 

 leaves and reduced to their naked boughs and stems, 

 caused the dreary image of winter to succeed in an instant 

 to the scenery of spring. When these clouds of locusts 

 take their flight, to surmount any obstacle, or to traverse 

 more rapidly a desert soil, the heavens may be literally said 

 to le obscured by them.' 9 



In Dr. .Kitto's notes on this chapter, from which 

 Volney's words, just quoted, are taken, there are the 

 following words, confirming my own remark as to the 

 striking resemblance between the locust and the horse. 

 Referring to the fourth verse in the chapter mentioned, 

 namely the second of Joel, where the words occur, " The 

 appearance of them is as the appearance of horses," he 

 writes, " The first time we saw locusts browsing with their 

 wings closed, the idea of comparing them to horses arose 

 spontaneously to our minds, as we had not previously met 

 with such a comparison, and did not at the time advert to 

 the text. The resemblance in the head first struck our 

 attention ; and this notion having once arisen, other 

 analogies were found in its general appearance and action 

 in feeding. We have since found the observation very 

 common." The Italians, indeed, from this resemblance, 

 call the locust Cavaletta, or "little horse." Sir W. 

 Ouseley reports: "Zakaria Cazvini divides the locusts 

 into two classes, like horsemen and footmen, mounted 



