GNAT. 339 
ble that it can be bent in any direction : 
within this there is another tube, very 
sharply pointed, and containing five or 
six minute points, which are shaped like 
lancets. The gnat deliberately inserts this 
pointed inner tube in the skin, and then 
darts the lancets into a small vein, at the 
same moment ejecting through the tube in- 
to the wound a drop of a clear liquid, which, 
mixing with the blood, renders it more 
fluid, and more easy to suck up. It is 
supposed that the itching and irritation, 
which attend gnat bites, is produced by 
the acrid, or poisonous, qualities of this 
liquid. 
Lucy, Are there many kinds of 
gnats ? 
Mother, I think there are fourteen or 
fifteen species. One of the most trouble- 
some is the little midge, which bites so 
sharply in damp evenings. The mos- 
quito, which is so great a torment to the 
inhabitants of the West Indies, and of all 
hot climates, is a species of gnat ; and 
the wound which they inflict is much 
0,2 
