
THE WEST INDIAN FIRE BEETLE. 423 
P first beholding them. How many times have we chased 
them, hat in hand, just at dusk in a warm summer's evening, 
and thought we were quite sure of our prize, when the next 
moment he was sparkling high in the air above our heads; 
and when, after many unsuccessful trials, we were so for- 
_ tunate as to secure one of them, how have we feared to take 
_ the little harmless creatures in our fingers, lest we should 
_ be burnt; or how, when their light was temporarily extin- 
guished, did we puff and blow, as if we had a live coal, to 
_ brighten them up again, so natural is the connection, even in 
the mind of childhood, of light with heat. 
_ This feeling of wonder, and a desire to know somewhat 
4 more of so strange a phenomena, is not confined to children 
flone. Older and. wiser heads have shared it too. The chem- 
_ ist, anatomist, and physiologist have each, by their peculiar 
; method of investigation, endeavored to obtain an answer to 
the question, How do animals shine? Nor is it strangé that 
; after all their efforts, they should fail to obtain a clear solu- 
_ tion of the difficulty. The chemist looks for phosphorus, a 
: Well-known constituent of the bodies of. all, or nearly all, 







2 like unsatisfactory result. The physiologist looks for some 
“rt of galvanic action, like that of the gymnotus or torpedo. — 
The anatomist, with perhaps no preconceived notions on the 
ie ct, makes his careful dissections in hope that some ar- 
Mangement of parts, undiscovered before, may reward his 
“earch and solve the problem ; but still we fail to be satisfied. 
Ne must, therefore, believe that while the Great Lawgiver, 
M this as well as in other natural laws, employs means for 
© accomplishment of the end designed,—the production 
ot tet ar ae bear no apnoe i = 
ca ect the same result, though under very 
“nt circumstances, The luminosity in animals is a power pe- 
falar in itself, as truly and distinctly so as seeing, hearing, 
“Muscular contraction, or the exercise of any other power or 

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