their strong jaws, toothed like the shears of a lob- 

 ster's claws, they perforate and round their curious 

 regular cells, having no fore claws to dig, like the 

 mole-cricket. When taken in hand I could not but 

 wonder that they never offered to defend themselves, 

 though armed with such formidable weapons. Of 

 such herbs as grow before the mouths of their bur- 

 rows they eat indiscriminately ; and on a little plat- 

 form, which they make just by, they drop their 

 dung ; and never, in the day time, seem to stir more 

 than two or three inches from home. Sitting in the 

 entrance of their caverns they chirp all night as well 

 as day, from the middle of the month of May to the 

 middle of July ; and in hot weather, when they are 

 most vigorous, they make the hills echo ; and, in the 

 stiller hours of darkness, may be heard to a consider- 

 able distance. In the beginning of the season their 

 notes are more faint and inward ; but become louder 

 as the summer advances, and so die away again by 

 degrees. 



Sounds do not always give us pleasure according 

 to their sweetness and melody ; nor do harsh sounds 

 always displease. We are more apt to be captivated 

 or disgusted with the associations which they pro- 

 mote, than with the notes themselves. Thus the 

 shrilling of the field-cricket, though sharp and stridu- 

 lous, yet marvellously delights some hearers, filling 

 their minds with a train of summer ideas of every- 

 thing that is rural, verdurous and joyous. 



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