Of the Scales of Fzfies,' i 15 
Her as the Wood of trees enlarge yearly by the addition 
of a new circle next the bark; and as the age of a tree 
may be known by its number of ringlets; fo in fifhes the 
number of plates k compofmg their fcales, denote to us 
their aee; 
To prepare fcales for the microfcope, take them care¬ 
fully off with a pair of nippers, and wafh them very 
clean, and place them in a fmooth paper, between the 
leaves of a book, to make them dry and flat, and then 
place them in Aiders between the talcs for examination. 
The eel, fnake, viper, lizard, flow worm, and the eft, 
&c. afford a great variety of fcales. The dog-fifh fcales 
confift of a great number of horny points, which appear 
in the microfcope to be curioufly ridged or carved. 
Of Ipiders. 
T K £ R E are fo many different forts of ipiders, 
and their form fo generally known, that a defcrip- 
tion of them in this place, cannot be expe&ed. I fhall 
therefore proceed to defcribe fome of thofe particulars of 
this creature, that are only be difcover’d with the affif- 
tance of the microfcope. 
Some fpiders have ftx eyes, others eight, others fewer, 
and fome more. They all feem to be creatures of prey, 
and to feed on other fmall infe&s, but their ways of 
catching them are very different. The fhepherd fpi- 
der by running on his prey; the hunting fpider by leap¬ 
ing on it; other forts weave nets, or cobwebs, whereby 
they enfnare them. Nature having equipped them both 
with materials and tools, and taught them how to work 
and weave their nets, and lie perdue, and to watch dili¬ 
gently, and run on any fly, as foon as ever entangled. 
I 2 Their 
* Leeuwenhoek’s Epiff Phy. Epifl. 24. Mai, 1-16, 
