~ 
Retrofpelt of French Literature—Natural Hiffory. ' 632 
it ought not to be omitted, that the 
Ex-canon of Riom is but little verfed 
in modern theories, and that his {ole 
merit confifts in having {pent much 
time in, collecting rare and curious 
facts; analogous to the fubject of which 
he treats. 
‘< Hiftoire Naturelle des Infeétes, 
compolée d’aprés Réaumur, Géoffroy, 
de Géer, Roefel, Linné, Fabricius, et 
kes Meilleurs Ouvrages qui ont paru 
fur cette partie;- rédigée fuivant la 
Métiode d’Olivier,avec des Notes, \plu- 
fieurs Obfervations nouvelles et des 
Figures deflinées d’aprés Nature, par 
M. G. de Tigny, Membre de la Soci- 
été d’Hiltoire Naturelle de Paris, Paris. 
—Natural Hiftory of Infeéts, compoied 
after Reaumur, Geoffroy, &c. 
This work contains— 
1. All the curious obfervations and 
remarks of the moft celebrated ento- 
mologifts—on the form,metamorphofes, 
habits, and manners of infects. 
2. The claffification is formed after 
the moft approved modern methods. - 
3- The editor, M. G. Tigny, has 
added whatever appeared to himfelf to 
be new or curious in the ccurfe of his 
own laborious refearches. . 
- Mémoires pour fervir 4 ?Hiftoire 
Naturelle, et principalement 4 l’Oryc- 
tographie de i’Italie et des Pays adja- 
cens, par ALBERT Fortis, un des XL 
de Ja Société Italienne, et Membre de 
plufieurs autres Académies des Sci- 
ences, etc. Paris.”"—-Memoirs for Na- 
tural Hiftory, &c. 
This work, which confifts of 2 vols. 
8vo. is ornamented with thirteen plates, 
which are well executed. The author, 
Albert Fortis, is a learned and laborj- 
ous Member of the Italian Society, - 
who has travelled over all Europe, on 
purpofe to examine the producticas of 
Nature, and converfe with men of {fci- 
ence, without being deterred by the 
political agitations, which have lateiy 
convulfed mankind, and almoft threat- 
ened the diffolution of focial order. 
The firt paper prefented to the rea- 
der, isau eflay on the voicanic geology 
of Vicentina, (Effai de Céologique Volca- 
nique du Vicentina) wiich he dedicates 
to the learned Faujas de St. Fond. 
After obferving, that the fide of St. 
Peter d’Arzignano, on which he him- 
felf has eftablifhed a hermitage, pre- 
fents the fineit fpecimens of bafaltic 
lava, he invites the reader to defcend 
with him into the valley of Agno, bet- 
_ter known by the name of Val de Tref- 
fino, the two fides of which are covered . 
with productions, alternately volcanic 
and marine. He ftops fora moment at 
Recoaro,. a place celebrated for its ga- 
zeous ‘waters, near to which arifes a 
rock, almof infulated, (71 Saffo della 
Limpia) called the Stone of Olympia, 
which prefents a curious collection of 
eryphites, belemnites, and térébratu- 
lites, exceedingly well preferved, ina 
horozontal pofition. The greater part 
of thefe marine bodies are fixed in a 
calcareous milky-looking {path, while 
their cruft is filiceous. 
At Caftelgomberto are to be feen the 
fources of two rivulets, which rufh in 
oppofite directions out of the fame 
cavern: the one called the Pofcola; 
the other the Rana. The entrance re- 
ferubles a ruftic gate-way; and the inte- 
rior appears calculated,according to this 
good-natured Italian, for an occafional 
vifit from Didoand ZEneas. 
M. Fortis next vifits the mountains 
in the neighbourhood of Montechio- 
Maggiore, where he finds a curious 
{pecies of madfepores: at St, Vito, he 
difcovers balanites and numifmal ftones, 
both of which are exceedingly {mall 
It appears that the bubbles, containing 
water, on Monte Berico, in the neigh- 
bourhood of Vicenza, and here termed 
Achatenhydres, were known to Clau- 
dian. Weare toldy that a fubtetrane- 
ous lake, at Coftoza, is inhabited by 
the cancer pulex macrourus of Linnzus; 
while the valley of Chiampo contains 
mines of coal, turrounded by volcanic 
productions; anda well, the water of 
which is vitriolic. | | 
As a proof of the laborious refearches 
of this author, he has given the follow- 
ing catalogue of all th¢ authors who 
have treated of Lenticular Stones, from 
the time of Strabo and Pliny until our 
own days, viz. 
Aldrovand (Mus. lib. 4.);—Mercati 
(Metail. Nat.) ;—Lancisci (dans ses 
Wotes a la Metallotheca) ;—Bourguet 
(Lettres Puilofophiques) ;—Scheuchzer 
(Effai de- Lithograpnie Helvétique, et 
ses Voyages des Alpes);—Bruckmann_ 
(Effai fur ja Pierre Nuraifmale de 
LTranfilvaaie) ;—bid. (Epitole Itine- 
rariz) ;—-Breyn (dé Polythalamils) ;— 
Spada (Catalcgus Petrefattorum) ;— 
Linozus (Ameenit. Acad. Differt. de 
CoralliisBalthicis. Mus. Teffinian.);— 
Gefner (Traité des Pétrifications ;— 
Born (Litophyla) ;—Guettard (Mém 
tom. 3.) ;—Targioni-Tozzetti (Rel. di 
Viaggi in Toifcana, tom. 1- p. 278._ 
4 Mz 2 €dit.) jm 
