INTRODUCTION. 
9 
Reptiles have legs, and flat, naked ears, devoid of au- 
ricles. The principal are the toad, frog, and lizard kinds. 
They are, with few exceptions, a harmless race of ani- 
mals. 
5. INSECTS derive their name from the circumstance 
of their bodies being separated in the middle. They have 
no heart or arteries, and breathe through pores arranged 
on their sides. Insects exist in countless multitudes, 
sizes and forms, and, though minute, display a formation 
pefectly adapted to their different modes of existence. 
They are divided by Linnaeus into seven orders. The 
1st have their wings sheathed under a crustaceous cover- 
ing, as the beetle and lady bird. The 2d have the upper 
wings half crustaceous and half membranaceous, as the 
locust. The 3d have their wings covered with fine scales, 
like powder or meal. This class includes butterflies and 
moths. The 4th have four membranaceous, transparent, 
naked wings, in which the membranes cross each other 
like net work, as in the dragon fly. The 5th have, in 
general, membranaceous wings, and are armed with 
stings, as the bee, wasp, ant. The 6th have two wings, 
each of which has a balance, as the house fly. The 7th 
are wingless, as the flea, spider, &c. 
It is worthy of remark and gratitude, that, while man 
is excelled in strength, courage, and almost every physi- 
cal excellence, by some one or other of the animal crea- 
tion, he is yet able, aided by intellect, to subject to his 
own uses the very powers, which, properly directed, 
might greatly injure, if not destroy him. 
