196 
NATURAL HISTORY OR 
tharus , and Helioccintharus. “ It should seem from 
the name,” say Messrs Kirby and Spence, “ derived 
from a word signifying an ass, that the Grecian 
beetle made its pills of asses’ dung ; and this is con- 
firmed by a passage in one of the plays of Aristo- 
phanes, the Irene, where a beetle of this kind is in- 
troduced, on which one of the characters rides to 
heaven to petition Jupiter for peace. The play be- 
gins with one domestic desiring another to feed the 
can tharus with some bread, who afterwards orders 
his companion to give him another kind of bread, 
made of asses f dung.”* 
Various insects of similar habits are found in dif- 
ferent quarters of the world, and they form a fa- 
vourite subject of observation with travellers. One 
of these abounds in America, where it is known by 
the name of the Tumble-Dung Beetle. An inte- 
resting account of its proceedings is given by a wri- 
ter on Carolina. “ I have attentively admired their in- 
dustry,” he says, “ and mutual assisting of each other 
in rolling their globular balls from the place where 
they made them to that of their interment, which 
is usually the distance of some yards, more or less. 
This they perform breech foremost, by raising their 
hind parts, and forcing along the ball with their hind 
feet. Two or three of them are sometimes engaged 
in trundling one ball, which, from meeting with 
impediments on account of the unevenness of the 
Intro, to Ent. vol # . 255» note. 
