188 NATURAL HISTORY. 
feveral globous bodies or joints, the laft of which is the longeft, and is 
armed with a fingle or double prickle or fling, a little bent at the end. 
Tt has eight feet or legs, and claws not unlike thofe of a Lobfter, arm- 
ed with nippers: the head feems to lie hid at the top of the breaft, with 
foch imall eyes, that authors take no notice of them. 
Old authors take notice of feven kinds of Terreftrial Scorpions, the 
fir of which is whitifh, and not at all deadly; the fecond has a reddifh 
mouth, and its fling produces heat, a fever, and intolerable thirft: 
the third is blackith, and its fiing caufes odd motions of the limbs, and 
a-laughter like that of fools: the fourth is greenifh, and its fting is at- 
tended with cold and fhivering, and gives the patient a fenfe of being 
in very cold weather. It has eight or nine joints at the tail, which is 
the reafon that it inflits a deeper wound: the fifth is of a livid pale co- 
jour, with a large ftrutting belly; this not only ftrikes with the tail, 
“but bites with a venomous tooth: the fixth is like a fea Crab, though 
it does not want a tail; but it has a large roundifh bedy, which makes 
it look like a tailed crab: they are of various colours, fome being 
black, others of an iron grey, and others green: the feventh is nearly 
in the fhape of a crab, with two large nippers, and it lives in holes by 
the fea fide.’ When it is boiled it becomes red like a Lobfter. 
Yhe South:-American Scorpions, are in the fhape of the Luropean, but 
their fting is not fo fatal, for the wounds they infli@ are eafily cured: 
they lurk im houfes, behind old ftools, benches, and chefts, and are, 
very large, fome being five or fix inches long: the tranflator of Nieu- 
hoff afarms, they are five or fix feet long; but this muft needs be 2 _ 
muftake for inches. A Carpenter was flung by one in the We. [undies 
when he was repairing a church, and it produced no greater diforder 
than the fling of a Wafp; it was foon cured by laying a comprefs on 
it dipped m ram’: the females lay their eggs in a web, which they fpin 
from their bodies in the manner of Spiders: the eggs are no larger than 
pins points, and they carry the bag along with them till they are hatch- 
ed, at which time they get upon the back of the old one, which turns 
her tail over them, and defends them with her fting. However there 
is another fort in fome of the iflands, whofe flings are much more dan- 
- gerous than thofe of the former, for which reafon they are very much 
dreaded by the inhabitants. It is certain that they change their fkins, 
as Crabs do their fhells, becaufe there are many of them found quite, 
whole, though empty, in the places where they ufed to lurk, except 4 
cleft under the belly, through which their bodies come out. 
At Batavia in the Eaft- Indies, there are Scorpions a quarter of a yard 
in length; but thofe of a lefler fize are fo cominon, that you can fearee 
move a ftool, bench, cheft, looking glafs, or picture, without being in 
danger of being flung by them: the {mall ones are about a finger’s 
length, and compofed of many joints of the thicknefs of a goofe quil : 
the colcur is yellow, variegated with brown flreaks, and the fore claws 
have two fharp pinchers ; their tail is long, and lies turned upon the 
back, at the end of which there is a Ring, which fometimes does 4 
great deal of mifchief: they have eight long legs, not unlike thofe © 
a Cray-fith, and the fing is accounted mortal, unlefs prevented in time 
Many believe that they are greatly peftered with Ants; but thefe a1¢ 
only the young Scorpions, that get upon the back of the old ORF a 
ee 
