LETTERS ON ENTOMOLOGY. 159 
be able to stop midway, her cruel enemy, who 
has six eyes on each side of his head, throws 
showers of sand from the bottom, which soon 
precipitate her into his jaws. These admirable 
instruments are at the same time hooked for 
holding, and hollow for sucking, and thus he 
regales himself at his ease : the dry carcass he 
jerks out, and then resumes his station. The 
insect remains two years in this state, and then 
retiring under the sand, spins a cocoon, and after 
remaining a chrysalis a few weeks, comes forth a 
four-winged insect resembling the dragon-fly, 
and preying in the same manner on moths, 
butterflies, and other insects. 
The larva of Rhagio vermilio, which resembles 
a maggot, also makes use of this stratagem, with 
but little variation. Thus, my dear Harriet, we 
see that nothing in nature is forgotten by a merci- 
ful Providence ; and though we cannot, with our 
limited understandings, conceive why the law of 
nature should be destruction, or why even in- 
sects cannot live without inflicting death on 
other creatures, yet let us not presume to arraign, 
even in thought, the inscrutable ways of that 
Being who is himself incomprehensible. 
You may perhaps be surprised that I have not 
mentioned snails, &c. ; but I believe they do not 
