OUR BIGHT OVER INSECT LIFE. 51 



but a conviction founded on an ample mass of evidence, 

 on my own observations and experiments, and strength- 

 ened by analogical reasoning. I wish I had space to 

 lay this evidence in full before the reader; but this 

 being here impracticable, I will not damage the argu- 

 ment by taking a few links out of a chain of facts which 

 depend on their close connexion with each other for 

 their strength and value. 



There is, however, one fact which may be taken by 

 itself, and goes a long way in our favour, that I must 

 mention here. 



Insects, when mutilated in a way that would cause 

 excessive pain and speedy death to vertebrate animals, 

 afterwards perform all the functions of life eating, 

 drinking, &c. with the same evident gusto and power 

 of enjoyment as before. Plenty of striking instances of 

 this are on record, and, as an example, I have seen a 

 wasp that had been snipped in two, afterwards regale 

 himself with avidity upon some red syrup, which, as he 

 imbibed, gathered into a large ruby bead just behind 

 the wings (where the stomach should have been) ; but 

 really the creature's pleasure seemed to be only aug- 

 mented by the change in his anatomy, because he could 

 drink ten times his ordinary fill of sweets, without, of 

 course, getting any the fuller. I could almost fancy a 

 scientific epicure envying the insect his ever fresh ap- 

 petite and gastronomic capabilities. 



After all that can be said on this subject, there will 

 itill probably be misgivings in the mind of many, both 

 B 2 



