THE AMERICAN ENTOMOLOGIST. 



183 



Snppoise now — for tlio sake of argument — that 

 a galloping liorse wore to strike the earth in the 

 posture in which such an animal is invariably 

 represented in pictures, that is, with the two 

 front legs tin-own forwards and the two hind 

 leg:s thrown backwards. What would be the 

 inevitable result? The front legs would be in 

 tlip proper posture for propelling the body of 

 the animal forwards and upwards, but the hind 

 legs would be absolutely incapable of any mus- 

 • cular efl'ort; and the necessary result would be, 

 that the fore-quarters of the poor beast would 

 be thrown feel)ly upwards, and the liind-quarters 

 would tumble to the ground with two long use- 

 less appendages trailing along behind. 



An old Greek philosopher was once arguing 

 to a large crowd, that in reality there was no 

 such thing in the world as motion. One of his 

 audience, finding that the philosopher was argu- 

 ment-proof and could not anyhow be theoretic- 

 ally convinced of his error, succeeded at last in 

 practically refuting liis ingenious sophistry, by 

 mounting on to the stage on which the old gen- 

 tleman was delivering his learned lecture, seiz- 

 ing him by the waist, and hurling him bodily 

 among the laughing assembly. Upon the same 

 pi'inciple, if any one of our numerous readers 

 should fail to see the force of our arguments, we 

 can only beg of him to open his eye^, for once 

 iu his life, the very next time that he hears a 

 horse gallop past him ; and we pledge our word 

 for it, that he will by this practical test be as 

 thoroughly convinced of the truth of our theory, 

 as the old Greek philosopher was convinced that 

 there really was such a thing as motion, by mov- 

 ing in his own proper person with very great 

 velocity through the air some two thousand 

 years ago. 



But is it not a shame for the "boss"' men of 

 America to have to come to a bug-man, to find 

 out how a horse gallops? And is it not a most 

 ■ wonderful thing, that so many thousand pic- 

 tures of galloping horses should have been 

 drawn by men with their eyes shut? And is it 

 not the strangest thing of all, that so many mil- 

 lions of people should day after day have pre- 

 tended to look at all these thousands of pictures, 

 and yet that not one single person, out of all this 

 cuoi-mous crowd, ever up to this day opened 

 his eyes wide euough for him to be able to tell 

 the world, how ridiculously absurd every one of 

 these pictures was? 



Note. — Since the above remarks on the gal- 

 loping horse were written, we have noticed that 

 the very same position is taken by a brother of 

 the Senior Editor, iu an English work on the 

 Horse, which has recently been reprinted in 



America.* It seems, however, that we were 

 mistaken in supposing that artists were not 

 aware of their error. '-These facts," says Mr. 

 J. II. Walsh, "are well known to artists, and 

 some of them, including the celebrated Leech, 

 have tried the experiment of drawing the gal- 

 loping horse properly. But their entire want 

 of success shows the impossibility of the per- 

 formance." Perhaps the only impossibility 

 consists in this, that our eyes are so used 

 to error, that they would be shocked at the 

 siglit of truth. So the eye accepts with compla- 

 cency mammalian angels with two Avings and 

 two arms, all growing out of one pair of should- 

 ers, cherubs Hying about without either legs or 

 body, and many other such impossible absurd- 

 ities. 



ANOTHER NEW OURCULK) lIll.MIJlIfi. 



A citizen of Morristown, N. J., spoke ot a German 

 gartlener of his acquaintanoe, whose plum trees bear, 

 notwitlistaiidiug the Curculio. He puis under his trees 

 a tub partly tilled witli potaA water, or very strong 

 soap-suds;"oii the water floats a small caudle tasteuei^l 

 to a block. The light is near t!ie water, and as the in- 

 sects fly near it, many of them dip their wings aii<l 

 periih.—AijricvUarul Fafier. 



Wonder if the " German gardener " doesn't 

 grow all his plum trees in a green-house under 

 glass, where the Curculio would have no chance 

 at all to get at his plums? Because, if he grows 

 them in the open air, like other folks, and if the 

 wind ever blows at all in his " diggings," it 

 seems to us that his " small lighted candle 

 fastened to a block and floating in a tub half 

 full of soap-suds," would be apt to blow out 

 semi-occasionally. We are confident that it 

 would do so iu Illinois or Missouri, but perhaps 

 in New Jersey the soil is so poor that the wind 

 can not get strength enough to blow there . 



AVonder if the New Jersey Curculios fly by 

 niglit, so as to be attracted by a lighted caudle? 

 Because out West Curculios will not fly, even 

 in the day time, except when the sun is shining- 

 very hot upon them. But probably that is in 

 consequence of all our Western bugs, whether 

 big ones with two legs or little ones with six 

 legs, being afflicted with that terrible complaint 

 known iu the West as the " Illinois disease," 

 and in the East as " laziness." 



"Dearl dear!" says Falstafl', "how all we 

 old men" (except of course certain ancient 

 Teutonic horticulturists) " arc addicted (o 

 lying!" 



