652 



ENTOMOLOGY. 



work, these orders are divided, and the vermes are se- 

 parated ; and, after the manner of Aristotle, are consi- 

 dered as forming another class. His final arrangements 

 we shall notice when speaking of his last (12th) edition. 

 See the year 1767. And in the same year at Upsal, 

 Acta Ltteraria Scientiarum Suecice. 



In 1736, all the works of Swammerdam were put to 

 press, entitled Biblia Nat lira, sive Historia Insect orum 

 Belgia, cum versionc Lalina, //. D. Gaubii, ct -vita auc- 

 toris, per H. lioerhaavc. The fust volume appeared in 

 1 737, and the second in the year following. 



In 1738, Lesser published a work, entitled, F. C. Lea- 

 sers Insecto-Theologia, Oder Vcrnunft-und Schriftmassi- 

 ger Versuch ivie cm mensch (lurch aufmercksame Bc- 

 trachtung derer sonst lucnig geachtcten Insecten, Sec. 

 Frankfort and Leipzig, in octavo. This work has never 

 come under our inspection. We have, however, no- 

 ticed a French translation, which appeared in 1742, at 

 some length. 



In 1739, Linne produced two entomological tracts, 

 entitled, Om Rcnarus Bromsku/or i I.afiland ; the other 

 dated Stockholm, Tal om Alarkivardightcr uti Insec- 

 tcrne. 



Also at Stockholm, in octavo, Acta Holmenses, Svcn- 

 ska Velenskajis Academiens Handlingar. 



And Kongl. Svenska Vetenskalis Academkns Halingar. 

 Stockholm, in octavo. 



In 1740, the folio work of L'Admiral, entitled, Naaiv- 

 kcurige Waarneemingen van Gestallverwisse£e?ide gekor- 

 ivene Dier/jes, was published at Amsterdam. It contains 

 a series of highly finished etchings, which are distinctly 

 copied by Harris in his Aurelian. This work is confined 

 to the insects of Europe, and contains figures of about 

 fifty of the larger species, principally of lepidoptera, 

 which are represented in various attitudes, with large 

 branches of the plants on which they feed, generally ac- 

 companied with their larva and pupa. It began in num- 

 bers, and was intended to contain one hundred plates, 

 and four hundred pages of letter-press, but the work 

 was discontinued. Most copies of the work contain 

 twenty-five plates, and five pages of print ; but Mr Do- 

 novan's copy, which is the most complete that we have 

 seen, contains thirty-two plates, and twenty pages. 



In 1741, Schaeffer published a valuable work, under 

 the title, Icones Insectorum circa Ratisbonam Indigeno- 

 rum, in three volumes quarto, with a vast number of co- 

 loured plates. The classification of this author differs 

 extremely from that of Linnaeus, and approaches that 

 proposed by Geoffroy, yet it is so far distinct, that being a 

 system of considerable repute, it may not be amiss to 

 present an outline of it in this place. He divides insects 

 into seven orders, which he terms classes : 



1. Insecta Coleofitero-macrojiiera, those with their ely- 

 tra crustaceous throughout their whole length, and ex- 

 tending beyond the abdomen when closed. 



2. Insecta Coleofitcro-microfitera, those with crusta- 

 ceous elytra shorter than tne abdomen. 



3. Insecta Coleofitero-hymenojitera, such as have their 

 elytra half crustaceous, or becoming membranaceous 

 towards their extremities. 



4. Insecta Hymcno-le/iido/itera, insects having trans- 

 parent or membranaceous wings, imbricated with scales. 



5. Insecta Hymeno-gymnofilera, those with naked 

 membranaceous wings. 



6. Insecta Difitera, or insects with two wings. 



7. Insecta A/itera, or those without wings. 



In 174^, a French work, being a translation of Les- 



sor's Insecto-Theologia, with remarks by Lyonnet, enti- 

 tled, Theologie des Insectes, ou Demonstration des Per- 

 fections de Dim dans tout ce qui conccrne les Insectes. 

 Traduit de L'Allemand de Mr Lesser, avec des remarques 

 de Mr Lyonnet, a la Haye, octavo, appeared. The ori- 

 ginal work we have never seen; it appeared in 1738. The 

 views of the author are to promote the glory of God; 

 nor did he in any degree attempt to establish a ny new 

 facts relative to entomology, but directed his attention to 

 the collection of such anecdotes relative to the natural 

 history of insects, as could be rendered a convenient me- 

 dium for the theological remarks with which his pages 

 abound. To the entomologist the work is of no use; 

 for his knowledge was but limited, and his remarks often 

 erroneous. As a theological production, however, it may 

 have an useful tendency, as it is calculated to expose the 

 glaring errors of others, who, with a fanatic spirit, had 

 entered on the same subject. One of the best chapters 

 relates to the abuse of insects in theology. He says, the 

 Jews are accused of stating many wonderful things rela- 

 tive to insects, which can only be considered as fables. 

 Amongst many instances, after repeating the text, Kings 

 i. 6, 7, concerning the erection of the temple, (» And the 

 house, when it was in building, was built of stone, made 

 ready before it was brought thither': so that there was 

 neither hammer nor ax, nor any tool of iron heard in the 

 house, whilst it was building,") he states, that the Jews 

 explain this passage in the following manner : The work- 

 men (they say) employed a worm to shape the stones; 

 which insect, named Sc/iamir, cut and broke them to 

 pieces in places where applied. They add, that it was 

 " figured like unto a grain of barley," and was kept in a 

 leaden box, " because had it reached rocks, it would have 

 cleft them, so as to unfit them for use." This fable, with 

 many others equally absurd, invented by the rabbis, is 

 particularly mentioned. Amongst the legends of Catho- 

 lic superstition, too, he selects several anecdotes equally 

 fraught with folly, which, if really believed in the time 

 of Lesser, will excuse him (he being a divine) for ap- 

 plying his time to the exposure of such gross absurdi- 

 ties. Two of these anecdotes we shall take the liberty 

 of inserting. Baldus relates, that a number of bees acci- 

 dentally passing over holy ground, paid it homage, and 

 carried a portion respectfully to their hive ; and it is stat- 

 ed that St Francis, when walking in his garden, saw a 

 grashopper, which immediately pitched on his hand, and, 

 at his command, sung psalms and praises to God. 



Detharding also, this year, published a Dist/uisilio Jihy- 

 sica Vermium in JVorvegia qui nova visi, in quarto. It is 

 a small treatise, relating to the larvae of Phalana, or 

 moths. 



In 1743, George Edwards published the first volume 

 of his Natural History of uncommon Birds, and of some 

 other rare and undescribed animals. London, quarto. 

 The other volumes appeared before 1752, in which se- 

 veral insects are given. 



In 1744, at Stockholm, was published by Degecr, an 

 interesting little work in octavo, on the utility of study- 

 ing insects, entitled, Tal om nyltan, som Insectere oc/i- 

 deras sharshadande, tiiskynda oss, pointing out the ad T 

 vantages of cultivating the natural history of those ani- 

 mals, and, as far as we know, is the oldest work on this 

 subject. 



In 1745, Ejusdem Olandska och Gothl'dndska Resa 

 fe'rratlad ar, 1741. Stockholm och Upsala, 1745, one 

 small volume octavo, by Linne. 



In 1746, Der monatlichherausgegebcncn Insect en-Be- 



