254 
, this gentleman, knows and dreads the 
greedy worm whjch devours their indigo 
and cafiada plantations. The caffada- 
worm is produced, like the filk-worms 
from eggs fcattered by the mother after 
her metamorphofis into a whitith butterfly. 
The egg is hatched about the end of July, 
when the animal is decked with a robe of 
the moft brilliant and variegated colours. 
In the month of Auguft, when about to 
undergo its metamorphofis, it ftrips off 
its fuperb robe, and puts on one of an 
admirable fea-green, which reflects all its 
various fhades according to the different” 
undulations of the animal, and the dif- 
ferent accidents of light. This new de- 
coration is the fignal for its tortures. 
Immediately a fwarm of ichneumon flies 
affail it, and drive their ftings into the 
fkin of their victim, over the whole extent 
of its back and fides, at the fame time 
they flip their eggs into the bottom of the 
wounds that they have made. 
Having performed this dreadful opera- 
tion, the flies difappear, and the patient 
remains for an hourina motionle(fs ftate, 
out of which it awakens to feed with great 
voracity. Then his fize daily increafes 
till the time of the hatching of the ich- 
neumon flies. The eggs depofited, are 
hatched at the fame moment, and the caf- 
fada is infantly covered with a thoufand 
little worms. ‘They iffue out of him at 
every pore, and that anzmated robe covers 
him fo entirely that nothing can be per- 
ceived but the top of his head. 
As foon as the worms are hatched, and 
without quitting the fpot where the egg is, 
which they have broke through, they. 
yield a liquid gum, which by coming into 
contaéct with the air is rendered flimy and 
folid. Each of thefe animalcule works 
himfelf a finall cocoon, in the fhape of an- 
egg,in which he wraps himfelf, thus mak- 
Ing, as it were, his own winding-fheet. 
They feem to be born but todie. ‘Thefe 
millions pice all clofe to each other, 
and the formation of which has not taken 
two hours, form a white robe, and in this 
the caflada- worm appears elegantly cloath- 
ed. While they are thus decking him, 
he remains ina ftate of almoft lethargic 
torpidity. 
New Patents lately enrolled. 
[O&. 15 
As foon as the covering is woven, and 
the little workmen who have made it have 
retired and hidden themfelves in their 
cells, the worm fendeavours to rid himfelf 
of his guefts, and.of the robe which con- , 
tains them. He comes out of the enclo- 
fure deprived of all his former beauty, in 
a ftate of decrepitude, exhaufted, and 
threatened with approaching death. He 
fhortly paffes to the ftate of a chryfalis ; 
and,after giving life to thoufands of eggs, 
fuddenly lofes his own, leaving to the 
cultivator an advantage which may be fo 
improved as to more than compenfate the 
ravages which he occafions. | 
In about eight days the little worms 
contained in the. cocoons are metamor- 
phofed into flies, having four wings. 
Their antennes are long and vibrating, 
fome have a tail, others do not thew it; 
they feed upon {mall infe&s of the family 
of Acarus, and evidently belong to the 
ichneumon tribe. 
Obfervations on Animal Cotton —The 
cotton-fhell or wrapper is of a dazzling 
white,and as foon as the flies have quitted. 
the cocoon, it may be ufed without any 
preparatory precaution; it is made up of. 
the pureft-and fineft cotton; there is no - 
refufe, no inferior quality in it, every part 
is as fine and beautiful as can be imagined, 
The object of the Author of this Me- 
moir is to urge the Americans to preferve, 
and endeavour to increafe the fly-carrier, 
in the fame manner, and for fimilar pur- 
pofes, that the breed of the filk-worm is 
encouraged. He declares that he has fre- - 
quently feen fo abundant a harveft of the 
animal-cotton, that in the {pace of two 
hours he could collet the quantity of 
one hundred pints French mealure. More- 
over, animal-cotton is attended with none 
of the difficulties which occur in the pre- 
paration of vegetable-cotton, and it re- 
“quires lefs time and» lefs trouble to pro- 
cure it, and there feems to M. D. Lo- 
zieres no doubt that it will ftand the com- 
petition with filk, and vegetable-cotton : 
thefe, when applied to wounds, ferve only 
to enflame and envenom, but the animal- 
cotton may be ufed as lint, without the 
fmalieft inconvenience. 
NEW PATENTS LATELY ENROLLED. 
MR. JOSEPH BRAMAH’S (PIMLICO) for 
MACHINERY for the purpofe of pro- 
ducing STRAIGHT, SMOOTH, and 
PARALLEL SURFACES 04 WOOD, ina 
- more perfec? Manner than can be per- 
formed by other cutting Inftruments. 
HE objects of this invention are to 
L fhorten manyal labour, by produc- 
ing 
a, 
