THE ROMANCE OF NATURAL HISTORY. 



secretes, which are thus left in the ground, and 

 springing up the following year, finally grow into 

 magnificent trees. Pheasants devour numbers of 

 acorns in the autumn, some of which having 

 passed through the stomach, probably germinate. 

 The nuthatch in an indirect manner also fre- 

 quently becomes a planter. Having twisted off 

 their boughs a cluster of beechnuts, this curious 

 bird resorts to some favourite tree, whose bole is 

 uneven, and endeavours, by a series of manoeu- 

 vres, to peg it into one of the crevices of the bark. 

 During the operation it oftentimes falls to the 

 ground, and is caused to germinate by the mois- 

 ture of winter. Many small beeches are found 

 growing near the haunts of the nuthatch, which 

 have evidently been planted in the manner de- 

 scribed."* 



Not less important, perhaps, are the results of 

 the destructive than those of the constructive 

 propensities and powers of minute creatures. Of 

 the charming "Introduction to Entomology," by 

 Messrs. Kirby and Spence, no less than five entire 

 epistles are occupied with the injuries which we 

 sustain from insects, while two are devoted to the 

 benefits they yield us. The former is almost an 

 appalling array; the injuries done to us in our 

 field-crops, in our gardens, in our orchards, in our 

 woods and forests, not to mention those which 

 attack our living stock or our persons, by these 

 most minute of creatures, are indeed well calcu- 

 lated to impress on us the truth of that Oriental 

 proverb, which tells us that the smallest enemy is 

 not to be despised. 



The locust has been celebrated in all ages as one 

 of the scourges of God ; and the Holy Scriptures 

 bear testimony how often in ancient times, and 



* ZoolopM, p. 442. 



104 



