257 



the drone to death, as they did before he assisted, simply 

 remained holding' on to the drone and waited patiently for 

 him to finish the operation — travelling back for another 

 victim when he had despatched the last. Gen. Oliver 

 said this story seemed almost incredible, and he should 

 not have, believed it himself had not Dr. Flint assured him 

 that it was a positive truth which came under his own per- 

 sonal observation. Was there not here a manifest reas- 

 oning ? 



Prof. Agassiz said that, in reference to the relation of 

 instinct to reason, he could simply give his own opinion, 

 which was, that there is no essential difference between 

 the t'w — his idea being that, while there may be what is 

 called instinctive action as distinguished from that resulting 

 from the deliberate exercise of reason, both were actuated 

 by the same influences. The difference in the influences 

 which actuate the lower animals and those which govern man, 

 he considered diiference in degree rather than differences of 

 kind — the one having in an undeveloped condition what the 

 other has in a perfect state. 



Mr A. E, Verrill spoke of the changes of the habits of 

 sea-gulls in the Bay of Fundy, who, from having been often 

 robbed of their eggs, have ceased laying them upon the 

 rocks and .sand, and taken to the highest trees. In cases 

 whei'e the robbing has been stopped by legal enactment, the 

 gulls have returned to lay their eggs upon the rocks. 



Messrs. Ives and Putnam alluded to the practice of the 

 yellow bird who resort to ingenious methods to protect 

 themselves from the encroachments of the cow bunting. 



Henry Wheatland alluded to the recent decease of Dr. 



ESSEX INST. PROCEED. VOL. iii. 33. 



