[ 6 ? ] 
of her tail. This die dieaths up, when it is not in ufe: 
with this dart (he pierces the lmall twigs of trees, 
and, a; the fame time, injedts an egg. The darted 
twiggs, that lie before you, will better fhew the 
manner, than I can defcribe it. 
It is furprihng to lee how quick they penetrate 
into hard wood, and croud it full of eggs, the 
length of two or three inches, ranged in a line clofe 
together, from twelve to eighteen in each partition. 
How Ihe depolites the eggs in this diredtion, it was 
difficult to difcover, they are fo very ffiy whild about 
this work: but my ingenious friend John Bartram, 
obferving her, in the beginning of this operation, took 
a drong woody dalk of a plant, and, prefenting it to 
her, Ihe diredtly fell to work upon it, as he held it in 
his hand. It was very wonderful to fee how dex- 
treoully die worked her dart into the lfalk, at 
every pundture dropping an egg. This was feen very 
didindtly, as Ihe did not touch the dalk with any 
other part of her body. 
The Cicadas fix on mod fort of trees, but like bed 
the oak and chefnut, which are the twigs before 
you, and the faffafras, and all orchard trees. 
They always dart to the pith of the branch, that, 
when the egg hatcheth, the little infedt may find foft 
food in its infant date. When mature, they creep 
forth, go down the tree, or drop off, and foon make 
their way into the ground, where they have been 
found two feet deep. Here they find a fecure repole, 
untill they have paffed through their changes, from a 
magot to an hexapode, and ladly to a fly. 
July 15th and 1 6th they were perceived coming 
forth : feveral darted twigs were perceived, and care- 
K 2 fully 
