,illustration3 ,,uncle ,,philip ,,talking ,,to ,,the ,,boys4 ,j4,j4 ,harper4 ,new-,york4 ,,uncle ,,philip',s ,,conversations with ,young ,persons4 ,illustration ,,new ,,york ,j4 ,j4 ,,harper #hb ,,cliff ,,st,t4 #ahcc4 ,,natural ,,history2 ,,or1 ,,uncle ,,philip',s ,,conversations ,,with ,,the ,,children ,,about ,,tools ,,and ,,trades ,,among ,,inferior ,,animals4 ,,with ,,numerous ,,engravings4 ,,new-,,york3 ,,published ,,by ,,harper ,,brothers41 ,,no4 #hb ,,cliff-,,street4 #ahce4 ,entered1 according to ,act of ,congress1 in the year #ahce1 ,by ,harper ,brothers1 ,in the ,clerk's ,office of the ,southern ,district of ,new-,york4 ,,advertisement4 ,we must tell our little readers something about this number of their ,library4 ,it was sent to us by a very kind old uncle of ours1 who1 when we were young1 was so much from home1 visiting various places in the world1 that we do not remember seeing him very often at that period4 ,at last1 the old man1 finding that he could not bear fatigue as he had done when young1 determined to come home2 and we had heard so much about him that we were quite anxious to see him4 ,he came to our house one evening1 and appeared rather odd to us2 but he was so good-natured1 and told us so many curious things1 that we soon forgot his odd appearance4 ,the old gentleman brought home with him a very large number of books1 and a great many strange things which he had gathered in his travels1 such as stones1 and dried insects1 and leaves1 and flowers1 and stuffed birds1 and animals4 ,he did not stay with us long1 but went to the village where he was born1 and built a small house to which he carried all his books and curiosities1 and said that he should spend the rest of his days there4 ,we sometimes pay him a visit4 ,the last time we were there1 we found him talking to several children around him4 ,in the beginning of the book there is a picture of the old gentleman4 ,after you have looked at it1 you may read the letter which he sent us1 and learn how he came to write this book4 ,your friends1 ,the ,publishers4 ,,uncle ,,philip',s ,,letter4 ,my dear ,nephews1 ,i was very much pleased to receive the numbers of your ,library for ,boys and ,girls which you sent to me4 ,you know ,i am now an old man1 and have travelled a great deal1 and seen a great many strange things in the course of my life4 ,i am too old to travel any more1 and so ,i am quietly living in the cottage ,i built by the side of that pleasant and shady little stream where ,i played when ,i was a boy4 ,i read my books1 and especially that best of all of them1 my ,bible2 and so am patiently waiting till my ,heavenly ,father shall call me to take my last journey2 when ,i hope1 for the sake of the blessed ,saviour1 to go to ,him4 ,sometimes ,i walk out into the village1 and meet the children and have a long talk with them4 ,they all know me2 and very often1 some of them will come to my house1 and ask me to tell them about things which ,i have seen in my travels or read of in books3 and so ,i spend many happy hours with the little creatures2 for you know how much ,i love children4 ,when ,i had read the books you sent to me1 ,i lent them to the children1 who were delighted2 and ,i thought that if ,i should sometimes write down what we here talked about1 it might please the little boys and girls for whom you print your books1 and perhaps they might learn something from our conversations which would be useful3 and so ,i determined to send them to you1 from time to time1 to print1 if you pleased4 ,if you think fit to print what ,i send1 just tell your little readers who ,i am2 an aged and quiet old man1 who is very fond of little boys and girls1 and wishes them to be wise and good here1 and happy hereafter1 and that ,i am your ,uncle ,philip4 ,newtown1 ,feb4 #ahcc4 ,p4,s4 ,if you print what ,i send now1 please to print the ,preface to ,parents1 which ,i also send2 in order that they may1 by reading it1 see what sort of a book ,uncle ,philip has been making for their dear children1 and may be satisfied that it will not harm them to read it4 ,,preface ,,to ,,parents4 ,the author of the following book avails himself of the opportunity afforded by its publication1 to address a word to those who sustain the delightful and responsible relation of parents4 ,to such of that class as may honour by a perusal this humble attempt to interest and instruct their offspring1 the author need not say that the subject of his book possesses for himself peculiar attractions3 it will readily be perceived that he has found a charm in the pursuits of the naturalist4 ,the votary of a favourite science would anticipate too much1 should he expect every one to partake of the enthusiasm which is apt to stimulate him2 it is wisely and kindly ordered that we shall not all be enthusiasts in the same direction4 ,the author1 however1 still ventures to hope1 that in his subject there is enough to attract1 though it may fail to fascinate4 ,he hopes1 too1 that it will be found not attractive merely1 but profitable also to his young countrymen4 ,there are many reasons on which to found such a hope4 ,if to entertain reverence for our ,maker1 to admire and adore his wisdom and goodness in the illustrations of nature1 thankfully to acknowledge and duly to improve the superiority which mind confers1 be exercises in which a wise parent would desire to train a child1--the study of natural science is admirably adapted to the attainment of these objects4 ,again1 if it be desirable to encourage habits of patient observation1 accuracy of investigation1 and soundness of thought2 let the volume of nature be opened before the youthful mind4 ,if to learn things be better than to learn words1 it is important to place things before the growing intellects of the young4 ,let it not be supposed that to present matters of science intelligibly to the minds of children is a hopeless task4 ,it requires not learning or maturity of understanding to perceive a fact2 it needs only the ordinary senses which ,god has bestowed alike upon children and their parents4 ,natural science is emphatically the science of facts2 built upon any other foundation it becomes conjecture merely3 and he knows but little of the mind of a child who is not aware of the facility with which a fact is impressed upon it4 ,the secret of instructing the young will be found to consist more in the mode of communication than in the nature of the subject4 ,as to the style of this work a word may be said2 not1 of course1 for the purpose of disarming criticism 7for truly the writer has never supposed his trifle worth the critic's labour or notice71 but simply to remark1 that the object has been to write for the minds of children2 if the book be intelligible to them1 the utmost ambition of ,uncle ,philip will be attained4 ,truth and plainness were all he sought4 ,the first he believes he has attained2 and to determine his success in attempting the last1 he turns from the parents1 and looks for the decision of the question to the suffrages of the children4 ,he would rather hear the expression of satisfaction from the lips of one intelligent little reader1 than receive the words of approbation from many who are elders2 the first is testimony derived from experience1 the last is but opinion4 ,children always know better than any one else does what books they understand4 ,in conclusion1 the author owes it to himself to say to the parents of his young countrymen1 and to the patrons of the ,boy's and ,girl's ,library1 that what he has written will be found on the side of religion and morals4 ,so far as these important points are concerned1 the writer is not ashamed to avow himself a ,christian2 nor yet does he mean to make it the subject of boasting4 ,in his simple view1 ,christianity is a very quiet and gentle thing1 which eschews strife1 and promotes practical goodness2 and truly can he say1 that he has indulged in some of his happiest and1 as he trusts1 his holiest musings when1 in the solitary pursuit of his favourite science1--to use the language of good old ,izaak ,walton1 that simple-hearted lover of ,god1 and all his works1--he has looked upon the wonders of nature with admiration1 or found some harmless insect to content him1 and pass away a little time1 without offence to ,god1 or injury to man4 ,,contents4 ,page ,,conversation ,i4 ,about a ,fly that can work with a ,saw and a ,rasp1 like the ,carpenter #ac ,,conversation ,,ii4 ,about ,grasshoppers and ,bees that bore ,holes with a ,gimlet #ai ,,conversation ,,iii4 ,about ,animals that are ,tailors #bg ,,conversation ,,iv4 ,about the first ,paper in the ,world made by ,wasps #da ,,conversation ,v4 ,a ,story about ,tom ,smith1 and of ,bees with ,brushes and ,baskets1 and of a ,bird with a ,chisel1 and a ,gnat with a ,lancet #ec ,,conversation ,,vi4 ,about ,animals that can do ,mason's ,work #ff ,,conversation ,,vii4 ,about ,animals that throw ,dirt with a ,spade2 and about an ,animal with a ,hook2 and about one that is a ,wire-drawer #hj ,,conversation ,,viii4 ,about a ,door1 with a ,hinge and ,spring to it1 made by a ,spider2 and the ,difference between ,god's ,work and ,man's #id ,,conversation ,,ix4 ,a ,story about a ,philosopher and his ,kite2 and about ,ants that have ,awls1 and build ,cities1 and ,stairs1 and ,bridges1 and many other ,things #ajd ,,conversation ,x4 ,more about the white ,ants #abj ,,conversation ,,xi4 ,about some other ,ants that are very good ,masons1 and build ,walls and ,ceilings2 and a ,story about a very sensible ,ant which seemed to think a little #abi ,,conversation ,,xii4 ,about ,ants that go to ,war1 and fight ,battles2 and about some that are ,thieves1 and have ,slaves #ach ,,conversation ,,xiii4 ,a ,voyage2 and an ,animal that makes itself into a ,ship2 and of an ,insect that builds a ,boat1 and floats about in a ,canoe2 and of another that pumps ,water1 and wears a ,mask2 and of a ,spider that builds a ,raft1 and floats upon it #aea ,,conversation ,,xiv4 ,about an ,insect with ,tweezers1 and another with ,pincers2 and how a ,fly's ,foot is made1 so as to stick to the ,wall #afg ,,conversation ,,xv4 ,how ,hats are made2 and about ,animals that can make ,felt like the ,hatter #aha ,,conversation ,,xvi4 ,about ,birds that are ,weavers1 and the ,politician ,bird2 a ,story about some ,philosophers2 and what may be learned from these ,conversations #bjb ,,natural ,,history4 ,,conversation ,i4 ,uncle ,philip tells the ,children about a ,fly that can work with a ,saw and a ,rasp1 like the ,carpenter4 ,well1 boys1 this is a beautiful day4 ,the sun is shining brightly1 and the birds are singing1 and the insects are flying about1 and the grass is green1 and every thing appears pleasant1 and you feel happy too1 and have come1 ,i suppose1 to see old ,uncle ,philip4 ,yes1 ,uncle ,philip1 we are tired of playing now1 and so we have come to ask you to talk with us1 and tell us about some of the curious things you know4 ,well1 boys1 ,i will tell you about some very strange things4 ,i will talk to you about animals that know how to work with tools like a man4 ,work with tools1 ,uncle ,philip6 ,that is strange2 but we know it is so1 if you say so2 because you will not tell us any stories but true ones4 ,but where do they get the tools8 ,ah1 boys1 'the hand that made them is divine6' ,they get them where we get all that is useful and good1--from ,god4 ,the ,bible says that ,he 'is wise in heart1 and wonderful in working2' and he has made many a poor little insect1 and given it tools to work with for its comfort1 as good and perfect as any that man can make4 ,yes1 these poor little creatures had tools long before man had4 ,god cares for the insects1 boys1 as well as for us4 ,but1 ,uncle ,philip1 what sort of tools do you mean8 ,tell us about them4 ,very well1 ,i will2 do you think of some kind of tools that men use3 think of the carpenter and his tools1 and let us see if we cannot find some of them among the insects4 ,why1 the carpenter has a saw4 ,is there any saw among these little fellows8 ,yes indeed1 there is2 and a capital saw it is4 ,now listen1 and ,i will tell you all about it4 ,there is a kind of fly called the saw-fly2 it has four wings1 and commonly its body is yellow1 and its head is black2 but the most curious part of it is the saw4 ,the young ones feed upon the leaves of rose-bushes1 and gooseberries1 and raspberries1 and currants1 and several other kinds of bushes2 and the old ones always lay their eggs on the branches of these bushes1 so that the young ones may have something to eat as soon as they come out4 ,it uses its saw to make a place in the branch to put its egg in4 ,uncle ,philip1 what is the saw made of8 ,it is made of something like horn1 and is fixed very nicely in a case2 it resembles what the cabinet-makers call a tenon-saw more than it does the carpenter's common saw4 ,the tenon-saw is made of a thin plate of steel1 and has a stiff brass back1 to keep it from bending4 ,the brass back has a groove in it1 and the saw is put in that groove1 and then it is fastened to it4 ,but the fly's saw is fixed in another way3 there is a back to it too1 but that back is not fastened to the saw4 ,the groove is in the saw1 and there is a ridge all along the back-piece1 which just fits in the groove1 and so the saw slides backwards and forwards1 and the ridge always keeps it in its place4 ,besides all this1 boys1 the fly is better off than the cabinet-maker1 for he uses only one saw at a time2 but our little workman has two exactly alike1 and they are so fixed that the creature first pushes out one1 and when it is drawing that back1 pushes out the other2 so that it is all the time cutting1 and does double work4 ,i think the fly's saw is the best1 too1 for another reason4 ,the saws of the carpenter and cabinet-maker have their teeth bent2 first1 one a little on one side1 and then the next to it a little on the other side1 and so on to the end of the saw2 so that when sawing1 the cut may be wide enough for the blade to move easily4 ,now the fly's saw has the teeth a little bent1 or twisted1 too2 but it has something else3 on the outside of every tooth there are a great many very small teeth1 so that the outside of every one is just like a rasp1 or file4 ,but1 ,uncle ,philip1 it must take them a great while to saw a very little cut2 they are so small4 ,yes1 it does2 but they persevere4 ,it takes them more than an hour and a half to make one groove1 and sometimes they will go on and make as many as six without stopping4 ,that shows1 boys1 what perseverance will do4 ,and when it is done sawing1 ,uncle ,philip1 where does it keep its saws8 ,oh1 ,i told you they fitted in a case2 but when the fly is done sawing1 it uses the saws to put the egg in the place cut for it1 and then it draws the saws almost entirely into the case1 and drops upon the egg a sort of frothy stuff like a drop of soap-lather4 ,what is that for8 ,i suppose it is to glue the egg fast1 or else to keep the juices in the bush from hurting it4 ,well1 this is a curious fly1 ,uncle ,philip4 ,it is strange1 boys1 because you never heard of it before2 but it is a cunning fly1 as well as a curious one4 ,what does it do1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,why1 when it is frightened1 it will fold up its case and saws under its body1 and draw up its legs1 and pretend to be dead2 and then it will not move1 even if you stick a pin through it4 ,can you tell us any thing more about this fly8 ,nothing very strange1 boys2 but we have found out two tools1 ,i think1 a saw and a rasp1 and that is enough for one poor little fly to give us4 ,here1 boys1 are pictures of these saws2 ,i have made them a great deal larger than they are in the fly1 so that you can see them plainly4 ,illustration3 ,saw of the ,saw-fly1 with ,rasps shown in the ,cross-lines4 ,illustration3 ,portion of the ,saw-fly's comb-toothed ,rasp1 and ,saw4 ,,conversation ,,ii4 ,uncle ,philip tells the ,children about ,grasshoppers and ,bees1 that bore ,holes with a ,gimlet4 ,well1 ,uncle ,philip1 here we are again1 to hear more about the tools that animals work with2 we have seen in the bark of trees1 and old wooden posts1 little holes as round as a gimlet could make1 and we have been thinking whether any of these little creatures have augers and gimlets1 as well as saws4 ,do you know of any of them that can bore holes8 ,oh yes1 boys2 ,i know of more than one that can bore as smooth and round a hole as any carpenter you ever saw4 ,there are some of the grasshoppers that have an excellent gimlet4 ,the contrivance has five pieces in it2 two of the pieces make a case to keep the augers in1 two more are the augers or borers1 and the other is a piece between the two borers on which they slide2 this piece has a ridge on each side of it1 and the augers have a groove which exactly fits the ridge4 ,besides this1 each auger ends in a knob1 and that knob has teeth all around it4 ,here is a picture of it4 ,illustration3 ,ovipositors1 with files1 of the ,grasshopper1 magnified4 ,but1 ,uncle ,philip1 what is the piece with the ridge for8 ,ah1 boys1 that piece shows the wisdom and the goodness of ,god4 ',his tender mercies are over all his works3' he has placed that piece there to keep the borers stiff1 so that they cannot get out of joint1 or be broken1 when the little workman is boring4 ,well1 this is very curious4 ,yes2 but there are some of these insect workmen more curious still4 ,did you ever see a spy-glass8 ,you know it is a round1 hollow piece of wood1 with brass tubes in it1 which are made smaller and smaller1 so as to slide into one another1 when the glass is not used4 ,now there is a sort of gadfly 7she is a little creature1 too7 which has exactly such a contrivance to keep her gimlet in4 ,it is in four pieces1 and the smallest piece ends in five sharp points1 three of which are longer than the other two3 she twists these five sharp points into one piece1 and as some are longer and some shorter1 when they are all put together1 they make a sharp edge running all around1 and are almost exactly like an auger or gimlet4 ,when she wants to use it1 she just shoots out the different tubes1 so as to make a stem for the gimlet2 and when she is done1 she puts all back into its case again4 ,here is a drawing of it1 and ,i think that by looking at it you will understand what ,i have been telling you3 ,i do not know whether men learned from this part of the fly how to make the case of a spy-glass2 but ,i know they might have learned4 ,illustration3 ,ovipositor or ,gimlet of the ,gadfly1 greatly magnified1 with a claw and part of the tube1 distinct4 ,there is also a bee1 boys1 which is called the carpenter-bee1 because it is such an excellent wood-borer4 ,it commonly looks for some old post1 or dry plank1 or withered part of a tree1 to work in4 ,it never works in wood that is green and has the sap or juices in it2 for the bee knows1 just as well as any carpenter does1 that it is very hard to get tools through such wood4 ,i expect that you have seen sometimes1 when an old post or dry board was split1 a long hollow groove in the middle of it1 with little round thin pieces of something like paper1 about as thick as a wafer1 fastened in it by their edges1 one above the other1 all the way through4 ,these show the work of the carpenter-bee3 she bored the hole1 and she put those little partitions like paper in it1 to separate the cells2 and more than that1 she made the partitions out of the dust she got by boring4 ,she always likes1 too1 to get a piece of wood in a place where the sun can shine on it2 and when she has made her choice1 she begins to bore at first into the post in a slanting direction1 and as soon as she has gone far enough in1 she then turns and bores straight1 with the grain of the wood4 ,does she do it quickly1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,not very quickly1 for sometimes the wood is very hard2 ,i have seen one of these holes nearly twelve inches long in a very hard oak board4 ,sometimes she has to work at it for months2 but she works steadily1 boys1 and that does a great deal4 ,what makes it more tiresome is1 that the poor little creature has to bring out all the dust she makes by boring4 ,how large is the hole8 ,oh1 large enough to put my forefinger in1 and sometimes fifteen inches long4 ,after she has bored it as deep as is necessary1 she begins to divide it into separate cells4 ,so she commences at the bottom1 and puts in a quantity of what is called bee-bread1 until it reaches about an inch in height2 on the top of this she lays an egg1 and the bread is put there to feed the young one as soon as it comes out of the egg4 ,she then makes a floor over it out of the dust1 as ,i told you2 she knows how to glue this dust together1 and she brings it grain by grain from the heap in which she put it when she first brought it out3 and she always begins by gluing the dust around the outside of the hole she has bored1 and then glues another ring to that1 and then another1 and another1 making each ring smaller and smaller1 until she has it all filled2 so that her floor1 when it is done1 appears like a parcel of rings of smaller and smaller sizes placed within each other4 ,on the top of this floor she puts bee-bread1 as before1 and places another egg on it1 and then covers it with a floor again2 and so she goes on making cells and filling them with bread1 and covering each with a floor1 until she has filled up the hole4 ,uncle ,philip1 how do the young bees get out when the egg is hatched8 ,it seems as if they were shut up for ever in prison4 ,no1 boys2 there is a way for them to get out1 and it shows the wonderful wisdom of ,god in teaching this poor bee how to contrive the matter4 ,the egg which is put in the lowest cell being the oldest1 the little worm that is afterward to be a bee will come out of that one first3 now1 you know1 he never could get through all the cells over his head1 filled as they are with bee-bread1 so as to come out at the top of the hole4 ,if he gets out at all1 then1 it must be at the bottom4 ,the old bee knows this1 and she so arranges these eggs that when the worm comes out it will be with his head pointed downwards2 he falls to eating his bread1 and so eats himself down to the bottom of his cell1 and there he finds that his mother has bored a hole from his cell to the outside1 and through that he comes out4 ,when his brother in the cell above him has eaten his way down to the bottom of his cell1 he just eats through the floor and gets into the cell below1 which is then empty1 you know1 and walks out at the same hole which his older brother used before him4 ,and so all the rest one after another eat their way downwards into the empty cells below them1 and get out at the same back-door1 which their mother made by what we call her instinct1 which just means the share of wisdom which ,god gives to the lower animals to show them how to take care of themselves4 ,illustration3 ,a1 represents a part of a post1 tunnelled in several places by the violet carpenter-bee2 the stick is split1 and shows the nests and passages by which they are approached4 ,c1 a piece of thin stick1 pierced by the carpenter-bee1 and split1 to show the nests4 ,d1 perspective view of one of the partitions4 ,e1 carpenter-bee4 ,f1 teeth of the carpenter-bee1 greatly magnified2 a1 the upper side2 b1 lower side4 ,why1 that instinct1 as you call it1 ,uncle ,philip1 is a curious thing4 ,very curious1 very curious indeed1 boys2 and at some other time1 if you wish1 we will talk more about it1 and ,i will tell you a great many stories of animals1 which will show you their instinct4 ,but for this time ,i have told you enough to keep you thinking until we meet again4 ,so now just look at this picture of the carpenter-bee's house1 and then you may go home4 ,,conversation ,,iii4 ,uncle ,philip tells the ,children about ,animals that are ,tailors4 ,uncle ,philip1 we are very glad to see you1 and we think we have found out something to ask you1 about a kind of work which men do1 that no other animal can accomplish4 ,as we came along this morning to visit you1 and were talking of what you had told us of insects that1 like carpenters1 could saw wood and bore holes in it1 we passed by the tailor's shop1 near the church2 'and now1' said we1 'we have found out something which will puzzle good ,uncle ,philip3 there are surely no tailors among the lower animals2 so we will ask him to-day to talk about creatures that can cut out cloth and sew it up with a needle4' ,ah1 my dear children1 there are a great many things which would puzzle ,uncle ,philip4 ,i do not know every thing2 nor do ,i suppose that ,i can find every trade in the world among the dumb creatures which ,god has made4 ,but you have made a bad choice of a puzzle this morning1 my boys2 for there are tailors among the inferior creatures1 and some pretty nice ones1 too2 at any rate1 they always cut so as to fit exactly4 ,why1 ,uncle ,philip6 ,you do not mean to say that they can cut out cloth1 and then sew it up again with a needle and thread6 ,no1 boys2 ,i do not think it is to be expected that they should take a pair of shears and cut a piece of cloth1 or put a piece of thread through the eye of a steel needle2 any more than we expect the insect that saws1 to go to the cabinet-maker1 and borrow his tool to work with4 ,but with the instruments which ,god has given to them1 they will cut what is cloth to them1 the leaves of trees and flowers1 and will sew them together too3 and1 now ,i think of it1 there is one that will cut his garments out of our cloth4 ,pray let us hear about them1 ,uncle ,philip4 ,softly1 boys1 softly4 ,i have two things to say to you before ,i begin4 ,in the first place1 ,i am very glad to hear that you think and talk among yourselves about the things which ,i tell you3 and in the next place1 ,i know that you love me1 and1 therefore would not wish1 by puzzling me1 as you call it1 to produce mortification or vexation2 nor do ,i think that ,i should have felt either vexed or mortified had ,i not been able to find tailors among the lower animals2 but ,i do not wish you to take pleasure in puzzling people2 for it is very apt to produce in you a feeling of triumph1 and to make you vain3 and you must remember that for one of your questions which cannot be answered1 a thousand might be put to you1 of the answer to which you would be ignorant4 ,no man1 my dear boys1 knows every thing4 ,wise men talk with each other1 that they may learn from each other2 and the wisest are not ashamed to acknowledge their ignorance of some things2 and ,i believe they take very little pleasure in puzzling4 ,it is our duty to learn all that we can1 and to be always willing at a proper time to teach others what we know4 ,thank you1 dear ,uncle ,philip1 for your advice4 ,we did not mean to triumph over you1 if you had not been able to tell us of tailors among the animals4 ,but we see that you are right4 ,we might get a foolish habit1 which would do us harm4 ,exactly what ,i meant1 boys2 and now let us begin4 ,and first we will talk of the cutting out1 as the tailor always does that before he sews4 ,there is a kind of bee#a which1 like some of the insects we have already spoken of1 is furnished with a borer4 ,with this she forms a round hole1 like that made with an auger or gimlet1 in a hard-trodden path1 or sometimes in a piece of soft decayed wood4 ,it is in making her nest in this hole that she plays the part of a tailor1 for the nest is made of leaves1 sometimes taken from the rose1 at others from the birch1 ash1 or other trees4 ,the little creature cuts them commonly1 and ,i believe always1 into two shapes4 ,they are either half-oval1 that is1 half the shape of the bowl of a spoon1 or round1 and are of different sizes4 ,sometimes she makes a mistake in the size1 and when she finds it out1 she alters it4 ,these leaves are prepared to line the hole which she has bored1 and she begins with the largest pieces2 taking them into the hole1 she winds around in it1 until she has spread very smoothly a tube of leaves the whole length of it2 she then closes up one end of it by rounding it off and doubling the pieces of leaf one over another4 ,in this case she sets about making her cells4 ,she takes three of her half-oval pieces which have been cut to fit1 and contrives to roll them1 so that the edge of one piece will just lap over the edge of the next2 these1 when she has finished rolling them1 make the hollow of the cell1 which is not quite an inch high4 ,she next turns up the ends of these pieces1 which are cut to fit1 so as to form the bottom3 she then sets to work with three other pieces rolled in the same way inside of the cell just finished1 turning up their ends as before to form the bottom2 and within these she again works three others1 so that her cell1 when it is done1 is of nine thicknesses of leaves4 ,and you see why1 though she cuts the pieces of the same shape1 they are not all of one size3 they are of three sizes1 so as to make the cells within each other smaller and smaller4 ,but1 ,uncle ,philip1 you have not said any thing about the round pieces which she cuts2 how does she use them8 ,i will tell you3 after she has finished one cell she lays an egg in it1 and fills it all round with food nearly liquid2 now as the cell is lying down on its side1 all this liquid food would run out if it were not corked up1 and the bee therefore uses her circular pieces to stop up the cells4 ,and does she really make these round pieces to fit the cell8 ,yes1 boys1 exactly2 and they are cut too as regularly as if they had been first measured and marked with a pair of compasses4 ,and1 more than this1 the little creature will fit one in in less than a minute4 ,but the most curious thing is1 that sometimes she will fly off to a distance to get this round piece1 and bring back one which will exactly suit2 so that it really seems as if she carried the size in her head4 ,after finishing one cell she will make another1 until she has completed as many as she wants2 and then1 as she always builds them one upon another1 they appear like a parcel of thimbles stuck into each other and put into a case3 and here is a picture of it4 ,illustration3 ,rose-leaf-cutter ,bees1 and ,nest lined with ,rose-leaves ,this is very wonderful1 ,uncle ,philip2 and it does seem like cutting out pieces to fit4 ,very true3 but this is not the only cutter-out of leaves among the bees4 ,there is another kind1 called the poppy-bee1#b because it uses the scarlet leaves of the poppy-flower to line its cell4 ,it makes its hole in the ground1 as smooth and regular and polished as can be1 and then proceeds to line it all around with pieces of the leaves1 and cuts them to fit as she goes on4 ,if a piece is too large she will trim it down to the proper size and shape1 and always carries away the scraps4 ,now if you should take a pair of scissors and try to cut the leaf of a poppy-flower1 you would wrinkle it1 but this little workman will spread out what she cuts as smooth as glass4 ,when she has lined this hole throughout1 and carried the lining out beyond the entrance1 she fills it with honey and pollen1 or bee-bread1 as it is called1 about half an inch high1 lays an egg1 then folds down the leaves on it1 and finally fills the upper part with earth4 ,then she was not working for herself8 ,no2 she was providing a house for her young1 and ,god has taught her thus to take care of it4 ,i will now tell you of another little workman1 which ,i have heard called the cloak-maker1 because it makes for itself a mantle which really appears very much like a cloak2 and1 stranger still1 this cloak is lined throughout with silk4 ,can it be possible1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,listen1 and you shall hear4 ,these mantle-looking cases are made by the larva1 as it is called1 or grub of a little moth which forms a covering of pure silk2 this silk it spins from itself2 it is not woven so as to appear like our silk1 but still it is real silk1 and is worked into a great many thin scales1 which lap over one another like the scales of a fish4 ,but this is only the lining of the cloak4 ,this little tailor is the field-moth1 which first eats what it wants from a green leaf1 and then1 from the thin membranes left1 sets about making its mantle3 and it makes it of two pieces cut out and joined together with a seam1 just as a tailor would make it4 ,how does it go to work1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,why1 ,i will give you the account as it was given by a gentleman#c who was very fond of observing insects1 and who watched one of these little creatures4 ,he says that from the thin membrane of the leaf it first cut two pieces just equal in size and of exactly the same shape2 each of these pieces was to form one-half of the cloak1 and this he says was done wonderfully fast4 ,he noticed1 too1 that one end of each piece1 that which was meant for the bottom of the cloak1 was just twice as long as the other end1 which was the top4 ,the insect then placed itself between the two pieces while they were lying flat2 it afterward brought the two sides where the seam was to be1 together1 and fastened them at certain places1 still leaving1 however1 considerable spaces open4 ,it then began to turn and twist its body about in all directions1 until it moulded the pieces into a hollow form to fit4 ,when it found that it would fit its body1 it brought the edges of the seam close together through the whole length1 and contrived to sew or fasten them so neatly together1 that when the gentleman looked1 even with a magnifying-glass1 he said he could hardly find the seam4 ,the whole was lined with the silk spun from itself1 and was finished in about twelve hours4 ,why1 this little workman is the strangest of all3 but1 ,uncle ,philip1 you said there was one of these animal tailors that cut his garment out of cloth3 pray tell us of him4 ,when ,i said that1 boys1 ,i was thinking of the clothes-moth4#d ,they make their coats of wool commonly taken from our cloth1 and silk drawn from their own mouths2 and the strangest thing concerning them is1 that when they outgrow their clothes they will piece them to make them larger4 ,suppose the insect wants it longer1 it adds a new ring of wool to the end3 suppose it wants it wider1 it slits the case or garment1 not from one end to the other1 for this would leave it naked1 but it splits it half-way down the sides1 and when it has filled it in with proper pieces1 it splits the remaining half1 and puts other pieces in them4 ,there is another curious thing about this tailor3 it always makes its coat of the same colour with the cloth from which it takes the wool2 so that if it has first made its garment of a piece of blue cloth1 and is placed on a bit of red cloth when it wishes to enlarge it1 you will see its work exactly1 for the pieces which it puts in will be red4 ,this is the little fellow1 boys1 which does so much mischief to our clothes4 ,well1 ,uncle ,philip1 one can almost forgive his mischief for the sake of his ingenuity4 ,but you have said nothing yet about needles2 how do these little creatures sew8 ,why1 they have what serves as a needle to them3 but ,i can tell you of another animal which sews with a needle a great deal plainer to be seen than that of these little insects4 ,pray let us hear of him1 ,uncle ,philip4 ,i must go among the birds to find this workman4 ,there is a kind of starling1 called the orchard starling1#e about which1 ,mr4 ,wilson1 a gentleman who has written a great deal concerning the birds of our country1 gives a very curious account4 ,he says that this bird commonly hangs its nest from the twigs of an apple-tree1 and makes it in a very singular manner4 ,the outside is made of a particular kind of long tough grass1 that will bend without breaking1 and this grass is knit or sewed through and through in a thousand directions1 just as if done with a needle4 ,the little creature does it with its feet and bill4 ,mr4 ,wilson says that he one day showed one of these nests to an old lady1 and she was so much struck with the work that she asked him1 half in earnest1 if he did not think that these birds could be taught to darn stockings8 ,mr4 ,wilson took the pains too to draw out one of these grass threads1 and found that it measured thirteen inches1 and in that distance the bird who used it had passed it in and out thirty-four times4 ,why1 this was sewing1 sure enough4 ,yes2 and ,i saw1 when ,i was in the ,west ,indies1 another kind of starling#f which will cut leaves into a shape like the quarter of an orange-rind1 and sew the whole very neatly to the under side of a banana-leaf1 so as to make one side of the nest4 ,but1 boys1 there is another most beautiful little bird1 which is called the tailor-bird1 because it sews so well4#g ,it first picks out a plant with large leaves1 then it gathers cotton from the shrub1 and with the help of its fine long bill and slender little feet it spins this cotton into a thread1 and then using its bill for a needle1 it will sew these large leaves together to hide its nest1 and sew them very neatly1 too4 ,why1 dear ,uncle ,philip1 this is the most wonderful tailor of them all4 ,he is1 indeed3 but1 my children1 what do we learn from all that ,i have been telling you8 ,who made these little creatures with such curious skill1 and taught them to work so well8 ,it was the same ,god who made us2 for such wonderful things never came from what people call chance4 ,chance1 boys1 never made any thing3 and how very wise he must be to form such nice little workmen2 and how very good thus to teach them how to take care of themselves4 ,the ,bible says1 truly1 that 'his tender mercies are over all his works4' ,and ,i think1 boys1 we may learn another thing3 it is1 not to be so very proud of what we know2 for ,i rather suppose that we shall often find that the lower creatures around us understood many of our trades long before we found them out4 ,yes1 ,uncle ,philip1 it is likely that these little fellows you have been telling us of this morning were the first tailors in the world4 ,very likely1 very likely indeed1 boys4 ,but now ,i must bid you good morning2 for here comes our good clergyman1 and ,i am going with him to see a poor sick woman4 ,good morning1 ,uncle ,philip2 we will come again on ,saturday4 ,,footnotes3 #a ,megachile centuncularis4 #b ,osmia papaveris4 #c ,reaumur4 #d ,tinea sarcitella4 #e ,icterus mutatus4 #f ,icterus bonana4 #g ,sylvia sutoria4 ,,conversation ,,iv4 ,uncle ,philip tells the ,children about the first ,paper in the ,world1 made by ,wasps4 ,ah1 boys6 how do you do8 ,this is ,saturday1 and ,i have been expecting to see you come for some time4 ,why1 ,uncle ,philip1 we should have been here sooner1 but we went round by the old mill2 because we thought that perhaps we might find in some of the old timbers1 holes bored by some of those industrious little carpenters you told us about4 ,well2 and did you find any8 ,no2 but we found something else1 which we have brought to show you3 and we have been talking about it all the way4 ,we have not discovered any new tools among the animals1 but we think we have found out a trade that some of them work at2 and we wish you to tell us if we are right4 ,oh1 that ,i will do1 with pleasure1 if ,i can4 ,what is the trade that you think you have discovered8 ,it is paper-making1 ,uncle ,philip4 ,we have found this part of a wasp's nest1 which we have brought along2 and as you told us it was always best to notice every thing closely1 we examined this1 and it appeared so much like coarse paper that we thought 7for we knew it was made by wasps7 that man did not make the first paper in the world4 ,well1 boys1 that was not a bad thought4 ,now you see the advantage of taking notice of things1 and of thinking about what you see4 ,you are perfectly right in supposing that wasps make paper2 and1 if you please1 we will talk this morning about the wasps4 ,oh yes1 yes1 by all means1 ,uncle ,philip2 and we will thank you1 too4 ,i must first tell you1 then1 that of the wasps there are several kinds4 ,some build their nests under ground1 and some hang theirs in the air to the limb of a tree4 ,this part of a nest which you have found belonged to the last kind2 but ,i will tell you something about both4 ,but before ,i begin let me get some drawings ,i have1 which will help us to understand better4 ,i have them4 ,and now1 of the wasps which build under ground4 ,as soon as the warm season begins1 the first care of the mother-wasp is to look for a fit place in which to build2 and in the spring of the year she may very often be seen flying about a hole in the bank of a ditch1 and looking into it4 ,these holes which she examines are the old houses of field-mice or moles1 and some persons have thought1 what ,i expect is true1 that she likes to take such old holes1 because they save her a great deal of hard work4 ,but still1 as the holes are not large enough for her use1 she has a great deal of labour to make them do4 ,so she goes at once to work1 digging in the hole she has chosen1 and makes a winding1 zigzag gallery1 about two feet long1 and about an inch in width4 ,she digs out the earth1 and carries it out1 or pushes it out behind her as she goes on4 ,this gallery ends in a large chamber or hole from one to two feet across when it is done3 and now she is ready to begin her nest4 ,now then1 ,uncle ,philip1 she will begin to make paper1 will she not8 ,yes2 but here ,i ought to tell you that it was a long time before men found out what she made it of4 ,do you remember my telling you of a gentleman who watched the little cloak-maker to see how he made his garment8 ,well1 this gentleman1 whose name was ,reaumur1 was trying for twenty years1 he says1 to find out how the wasp made paper1 before he succeeded4 ,at last1 one day1 he saw a female wasp alight on the sash of his window and begin to gnaw the wood2 he watched her1 and saw that she pulled off from the wood fibre after fibre1 about the tenth part of an inch long1 and not so large as a hair4 ,she gathered these up into a knot with her feet1 and then flew to another part of the sash1 and went to work1 stripping off more fibres or threads1 and putting them to the bundle she had already4 ,at last he caught her1 to examine the bundle1 and found that its colour was exactly like that of a wasp's nest2 but the little ball was dry2 she had not yet wetted it to make a pulp of it which could be spread out4 ,he noticed another thing1 that this bundle was not at all like wood gnawed by other insects2 it was not sawdust1 but threads of some little length bruised into lint4 ,he then set to work himself with his penknife1 and very soon scraped and bruised some of the wood of the same window-sash1 so as to make a little ball exactly like the wasp's4 ,mr4 ,reaumur thought that this was the stuff out of which the wasp made paper1 and it has since been found out that he was right4 ,the animal wets its little bundle of bruised wooden fibres or threads with a kind of glue that it has1 and this makes it stick together like pulp or paste2 and while it is soft1 the wasp walks backwards1 and spreads it out with her feet and her tongue1 until she has made it almost as thin as the thinnest paper4 ,with this she lines the top of the hole in which she is going to build her nest1 for she always begins at the top4 ,but this is so thin that it would be too weak to keep the dirt from falling in2 and therefore she goes on spreading her papers one upon the other until she has made the wall nearly two inches thick4 ,these pieces are not laid exactly flat on each other like two pieces of pasteboard1 but with little open spaces between1 being joined at the edges only4 ,this is the ceiling2 and when it is finished she begins to build what may be called the highest floor of the nest2 this she makes of the same paper in a great number of little cells all joined together at the sides2 and instead of fastening this floor to the sides of the nest1 she hangs it to the ceiling by rods made also out of this paper3 these rods are small in the middle1 and grow larger towards the ends1 so as to be stronger4 ,here is a drawing of one4 ,illustration3 ,the ,cut represents one of the ,rods from which the ,floors are suspended4 ,she then makes a second floor1 and hangs it under the first by rods as before2 and the whole of it1 when finished1 if it should be cut straight through the middle1 would appear something like the following picture of one which ,i made some years ago4 ,illustration3 ,section of the ,social-,wasp's ,nest4--aa1 the outer wall2 b1 cc1 five small terraces of cells for the neuter wasps2 dd1 ee1 three rows of large cells for the males and females4 ,this is a very ingenious little paper-maker4 ,uncle ,philip4 ,yes1 boys1 it is so4 ,this of which ,i have been telling you is the ground-wasp4 ,the tree-wasp makes its nest of paper prepared in the same way2 and the nests are of different shapes4 ,one makes it in a round flattened ball1 not much larger than a rose1 and when cut open it shows layer upon layer of leaves of the same thin grayish-looking paper4 ,this kind is not so common1 however4 ,here is one of their nests4 ,illustration3 ,wasp's ,nest4 ,another makes its nest of cells placed in separate floors1 but without any outer wall to keep off the rain2 and the most curious thing in this nest is1 that it is not placed in a horizontal way2 that is1 it is not placed with the floors level1 because then the cells would catch the rain1 and the nest would be spoiled2 but it is always placed slanting1 so that the rain may run off4 ,it is always placed1 too1 so as to face the north or the west1 and ,i suppose it is because the wasp knows that it is in more danger of rain from the south and the east4 ,here is a nest of this kind4 ,illustration3 ,wasp's ,cells attached to a branch4 ,ah1 ,uncle ,philip6 this must be a kind of lazy wasp4 ,it does not choose to take the trouble to cover up the house1 and so it hangs it slanting1 to make the rain run off4 ,it may be so1 boys2 but ,i think that in making this wasp lazy1 you make it a very sensible wasp2 else how should it know that water would run down a slanting surface8 ,but ,i cannot believe that it is so lazy2 for1 though it does not cover up the whole house in a paper shell1 yet it does what no other wasp does1 it covers its nest with a complete coat of shining1 water-proof varnish1 to prevent the rain from soaking into the cells4 ,and putting on this varnish1 ,i can tell you1 is no trifling work4 ,it forms a pretty large part of the labour of the whole swarm belonging to the nest2 and sometimes you may see some of them at work for hours at a time1 spreading it on with their tongues4 ,no1 my lads1 he who wants an example of laziness1 will not find it among the wasps4 ,but let us come back to the paper4 ,hornets make paper for their nests much in the same manner as the wasps do1 only it is coarser4 ,there is1 however1 one kind of wasp which makes a sort of paper more curious than this which you have found4 ,it is not a wasp found in this country at all4 ,it is the ,cayenne wasp1 and so smooth1 strong1 and white is the outside of his nest that it appears like a card1 and he is for that reason sometimes called the card-maker wasp4 ,he hangs his nest on the branch of a tree1 and it is so hard and polished on the outside that the rain rolls off from it1 as if it were glass4 ,a little hole in the lower end is left for the animal to pass in and out2 and in this picture of it1 which ,i have1 a piece is left out of the side to show how the cells within are fixed4 ,illustration3 ,nest of the ,card-maker ,wasp1 with part removed to show the arrangement of the ,cells4 ,well1 then1 ,uncle ,philip1 we were right in thinking that wasps were the first paper-makers2 and very glad we are that we saw this old piece of a wasp's nest4 ,who would have thought that so much could be learned by picking up this old scrap of a wasp's work6 ,very good sense1 boys1 in that thought4 ,a wise man will learn something from almost any thing4 ,use your eyes1 and think of what you see4 ,now in this very trade of paper-making4 ,i think that man would have found it out a great deal sooner if he had watched the wasps at their work4 ,they have been excellent workmen at this business from the beginning2 and man has gone on learning little by little of this very trade1 as ,i will tell you at some other time1 when he might have made a long step at once1 had he but noticed wasps and hornets4 ,we go on very slowly sometimes in learning to make a trade as perfect as it can be3 the poor animal1 with its knowledge such as ,god gave it1 is often our superior4 ,these dumb creatures cannot teach us every thing2 there is a point to which they can go1 and no further3 but as far as they do know1 their knowledge is perfect2 and ,i make no doubt that a great many useful things not now known will hereafter be found out by watching dumb animals4 ,,conversation ,v4 ,uncle ,philip tells the ,children a ,story about ,tom ,smith2 and of ,bees with ,brushes and ,baskets1 and of a ,bird with a ,chisel1 and a ,gnat with a ,lancet4 ,uncle ,philip1 as the day is fine1 instead of sitting here1 will you walk with us1 this morning8 ,yes1 boys2 let me get my cane and hat1 and we will take a ramble2 perhaps we may see something1 if we will use our eyes4 ,where do you wish to go8 ,oh1 we do not care much1 if you are with us1 which way we walk2 any course will be pleasant4 ,come on1 then2 we will cross the river1 and go down on the other side beyond the old mill1 where you found the wasp's paper4 ,and now1 such of you as will1 may keep a look-out for curious things1 while the rest of us will talk together4--,boys1 do any of you know ,tom ,smith8 ,know him6 ,why1 ,uncle ,philip1 everybody in this part of the country knows him2 he is such a shocking drunkard1 and swears so horribly1 that nobody can forget him2 and what makes it worse1 he is an old man1 too4 ,his hair is almost as white as yours1 ,uncle ,philip4 ,yes2 he is just about my age4 ,we were both born here1 and ,i have known him ever since we were boys2 and when we played together as children1 over this very field which we are now crossing1 or caught fish in the river down yonder by the rocks1 there was not a more decent1 well-behaved1 handsome boy among us than was ,tom ,smith4 ,poor ,tom lost his father when he was about twelve years old1 and his mother1 having no other child1 indulged him1 until he was sent to the city to go into a store4 ,but ,tom then1 boys1 had good principles2 he neither swore nor got drunk4 ,in a little time he fell into bad company1 and they led him astray by degrees4 ,he was so good-natured 7as they call it71 boys1 that he had never the firmness to say no to the proposals of his companions4 ,he went with them to places of amusement2 and instead of spending his evenings in his own room1 reading1 he was at the theatre1 or dancing in some place1 or at a supper with his young companions2 and finally he began to play cards and billiards with them2 while the inside of the church was a place which he never saw4 ,he was cheated by his companions2 and too honest he was then not to pay what he lost by gaming3 he wrote to his poor mother1 and told her the truth1 as to his losses1 and she sent him money to pay his debts1 and told him to come home4 ,he did come home2 and even after all that had happened1 poor ,tom might have been respectable and happy2 for his friends were all willing to forget the past1 and encourage him for the future4 ,for a time he went on pretty well1 and married an affectionate and good young woman1 and his prospects were bright enough3 but one thing1 boys--one single thing1 ruined his comfort for ever4 ,in the city he had learned to drink strong liquors4 ,i remember1 too1 soon after he came home and married1 that a man was hung not far from here for murdering his wife4 ,the man was a drunkard1 though he was quite sober when he killed the poor woman2 and drunkenness had hardened his heart4 ,i have no doubt1 as it will the heart of any man4 ,tom was talking to me about that man1 and ,i remember he said then that when a man began to drink1 he could never say where it would end1 nor what he would do3 'therefore1' said ,tom1 'beware of the first drink4' ,but ,tom1 though he talked like a ,christian and a man about it1 did not act like one3 for it was not long before he began to follow his bad habit1 and he soon killed his poor mother2 for she died of grief and sorrow1 ,i think4 ,his excellent wife speedily followed her to the grave2 and ,tom ,smith left the village1 a perfect vagabond1 whom no one cared for4 ,where he went1 or what he did for a long time1 no person here knows4 ,i went to other countries1 and neither heard of nor saw ,tom ,smith until my return home1 when ,i found him wandering about here1 a gray-headed swearer and drunkard4 ,he did not know me1 and ,i never should have known him1 had not some one told me who he was4 ,and last night ,i received a letter from one of my nephews in the city1 which informed me that ,tom ,smith had been tried in the court1 and found guilty of stealing1 and was sent to the state prison for ten years to hard work4 ,there ,i suppose he will die for he is now old2 and it is awful to think of what is then to become of his soul4 ,ah1 my dear boys6 ,i could not help thinking1 when ,i read my letter1 of what that man said to me years ago--and ,i have told you his story1 hoping that you will remember his words1 ',beware of the first drink4' ,the man who does that will never be a drunkard4 ,and when old ,uncle ,philip is laid in the grave1 boys1 which must be before many years1 remember1 as you look upon the place1 that he told you the story of ,tom ,smith1 and charged you to 'beware of the first drink4' ,but here come some of the boys1 running towards us2 ,i suppose they have found something4 ,oh1 ,uncle ,philip6 ,uncle ,philip6 ,do come with the boys this way4 ,under that fence yonder there are a great many beautiful wild flowers1 and a number of bees are as busy as they can be about them2 pray come and see them4 ,well1 ,i will2 but not so fast1 boys2 you forget that ,i am an old man1 and cannot run as you do4--,so1 here are1 indeed1 a great many industrious little workmen4 ,what are they doing1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,these are workers among the bees1 and they are gathering the dust out of the flowers1 to work it up into what is commonly called bee-bread4 ,more tools here1 boys6 ,tools1 ,uncle ,philip6 ,ah1 we like that3 pray let us hear of them2 what are they8 ,why1 there is a brush and a basket in the legs of these little fellows2 but they are so small that you cannot see them without a microscope4 ,what is a microscope8 ,it is an instrument1 made by fixing glasses in such a way to look through1 that small things will seem to be very large4 ,do you not see how some of these little fellows are rolling themselves over in the inside of the flowers1 so that the yellow dust is sticking to them8 ,now their breasts1 and legs1 and many other parts of their bodies are covered with very short hairs1 which catch the dust4 ,the last joint but one of each leg is made exactly like a brush1 the hairs being longer there than on any other part2 and with these they brush off the dust1 and get it into two little heaps4 ,the bags into which they put it1 or rather the baskets1 are in the thighs of the last pair of legs4 ,these are hollow1 so as to form a three-sided basket4 ,the bottom of it is smooth and shining1 and appears like horn1 and all around the edges are placed very strong1 thick-set hairs1 like bristles4 ,what are these for8 ,to keep things from falling out of the basket2 and these bristles are so strong that even if they heap up more than the basket will hold1 the bristles will keep it from falling4 ,here is a drawing of these legs4 ,illustration3 ,structure of the legs of the ,bee for carrying propolis and pollen1 magnified4 ,besides carrying this dust1 they also carry what is called propolis4 ,what is propolis1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,it is a gum which is found upon some trees4 ,this they work up into little balls1 and knead it until it is a little dry1 so as not to stick4 ,this takes the bee sometimes as much as half an hour4 ,when the balls are ready1 she passes them backwards with her feet to the basket1 puts them in1 and gives them a pat or two to make them lie close2 and when she adds more1 she pats it still harder1 and when the basket is full1 away she goes to the hive4 ,but there is another curious instrument about the bee4 ,i mean its sting3 this is like the head of a barbed or bearded arrow4 ,there is a sheath for it when the bee does not wish to use it2 and here is a picture of it4 ,illustration3 a1 ,the sting of a ,bee1 magnified to show the barbed darts2 b1 the last ring of the abdomen of a ,bee opened1 showing the sting in its sheath4 ,but let us now continue our walk4 ,well1 ,uncle ,philip1 it is really very pleasant to walk with you3 it seems as if you met nothing which could not teach us things worth knowing4 ,why1 my dear boys1 there are1 as ,i told you once before1 a great many things which ,i do not know2 and what ,i do know ,i am very willing to tell you4 ,but you may learn just as ,i did1--by reading1 by taking notice of things around you1 and by thinking for yourselves4 ,and ,i do not know any thing more pleasant to notice than the works of ,god4 ,i see his wisdom and his goodness in every thing which he has made4 ,i see them in the insects1 and the birds1 and the larger animals2 ,i see them in the grass1 and the flowers1 and the trees2 and ,i see them in the rocks and the stones upon the ground4 ,all these things are well worth our attention1 boys2 the study of all these things around us is called the study of ',natural ,history2' and ,i think it is apt to make him who loves it a better man2 at any rate1 ,i believe that there have been very few who have been fond of it1 who have not been amiable and benevolent men4 ,but1 hark6 ,do you hear that noise8 ,yes1 ,uncle ,philip2 it is the sound of men chopping wood in that clump of trees4 ,no1 boys2 it is like the sound of a wood-cutter2 and it is a wood-cutter1 but he does not use one of our hatchets4 ,what is it that he uses1 then8 ,he uses the tool which ,god gave him4 ,it is a bird1 boys1 which you hear3 it is the woodpecker4 ,see1 there it is on yonder tree1 and look1 at the foot of it1 there is something like a bushel of the bird's chips or dust4 ,its bill is a complete chisel2 it is straight1 hard1 and sharp1 with edges too upon the sides4 ,it is not a very broad chisel1 but still it is one1 and used as we use ours4 ,but the chisel is not the only instrument of that workman4 ,its tongue is worth examining4 ,it bores a hole into a tree that is dead or decaying1 to look for insects whose nests are in the tree2 and when it reaches the cell where the young insect is1 it uses its tongue to get it out1 and it suits exactly for the business4 ,in the first place1 it is so long that the bird can shoot it out three or four inches longer than the bill is2 in the next place the end of it is tipped with a stiff1 sharp1 long thorn2 and in the last place1 that thorn has little teeth on both sides of it1 like that which you see on the point of a fish-hook3 these teeth are to keep the insect from falling off when it puts its tongue in the hole and sticks its sharp point into it to draw it out for food4 ,so that besides the chisel1 the woodpecker has a spear1 or lance1 or arrow1 barbed 7as it is called7 or bearded at the point4 ,but we are some distance1 boys1 beyond the old mill3 suppose we now turn back towards home2 ,i find the gnats rather troublesome4 ,so do we1 ,uncle ,philip2 they have been biting us for some time3 it would be well if there were no such tormenting things in the world4 ,i am not sure of that1 boys4 ,we may not always be able to find out the exact use of some of these little animals2 but that only shows that we are ignorant1 not that they are of no use4 ,god would never have made them if he had not some wise purpose in doing so3 ,i do not believe he ever wastes his power in making useless things4 ,but what will you say about gnats1 when ,i tell you that they have a tool to work with1 and a very perfect one1 too8 ,why1 we will almost forgive them for biting us4 ,biting you6 ,they have not been biting with teeth3 they are doctors1 boys2 they have only been bleeding you1 and cupping you4 ,and what have they been bleeding us with8 ,why1 with a lancet1 to be sure2 what should a doctor use but a lancet to let blood8 ,and has the gnat really a lancet8 ,yes1 it has3 this instrument forms a part of what you may call the tongue of the gnat3 it is made up of five pieces1 which are shut up in a case1 split from one end to the other2 these give steadiness to the lancet when it is used4 ,but the reason of the pain is not so much the wound of the lancet1 as it is the fluid or poisonous juice which the gnat puts into the wound to make the blood thin enough for the insect to suck it up through a tube or case1 which makes part of its mouth4 ,here is a drawing of part of a gnat's mouth4 ,illustration ,and here is a picture of the lancet or knife of a horse-fly4 ,illustration ,we have now reached the bridge1--and here we must part2 your homes are in one direction1 and mine is in the opposite4 ,i hope1 however1 that you have learned something in our morning's walk4 ,we have1 ,uncle ,philip1 and we thank you much1 and bid you1 good day4 ,good day1 boys4 ,,conversation ,,vi4 ,uncle ,philip tells the ,children about ,animals that can do ,mason's ,work4 ,uncle ,philip1 we saw a very strange thing just now2 as we were coming1 we saw a great many bees flying by us1 and each one was carrying a little stone4 ,that was strange1 indeed4 ,did you find out any thing about them8 ,we asked a man who was near what they did it for1 and he said that they carried the stones to prevent the wind1 which is blowing pretty fresh1 from tossing them about too much4 ,that is a very silly story1 boys1 though it is a very old one3 for ,i have seen them carrying what you call stones when it was quite calm1 and there was no wind to blow them away4 ,the man was very ignorant1 or he would have told you another story1 which would have been both strange and true4 ,will you have the goodness1 ,uncle ,philip1 to tell us what it meant8 ,very willingly1 boys4 ,what you saw ,i presume were bees4 ,you remember that ,i told you there were several kinds of bees2 and this one is called the mason-bee4 ,this kind builds his nest of mortar1 and was therefore called the mason-bee by ,mr4 ,reaumur first1 ,i believe4 ,where does it get the mortar1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,it makes it1 boys4 ,this kind of bee may be seen flying about1 picking up sand1 grain by grain1 putting it into a heap1 gluing them together with a sort of gum out of her own mouth1 and building with them a foundation for her house4 ,this little workman commonly builds against the side of a wall between two bricks where the mortar has fallen out2 and if you should see one of the nests1 it appears exactly like a lump of dry mud which has been thrown wet upon the wall out of a cart-rut3 but when you examine it closely1 you may see a great many small stones in it1 more than is common in mud3 a hundred people1 though1 might pass by it1 and never think it was any thing more than a lump of dirt1 which had been thrown upon the wall when it was wet1 and had afterward dried there4 ,here is a picture of one of these nests4 ,illustration3 ,exterior wall of ,mason-bee's ,nest4 ,you see there is a small hole in it2 this leads to a cell inside about an inch deep1 and shaped exactly like a lady's thimble2 the inside of this cell is polished smooth1 and appears like a wall of plaster1 except that it has little yellow stains upon it4 ,here is the bee that makes it4 ,illustration3 ,mason-bee4--,natural size4 ,in making this mortar to build with1 the bee will sometimes add earth that is soft to its grains of sand1 and when the lump is about the size of a small shot1 it takes it up and flies away with it1 to work it into the wall4 ,does it always use sand1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,not always3 sometimes it takes wet clay1 and will dig into a bank of clay baked hard by the sun on the outside1 so as to get that which is wet4 ,mr4 ,rennie1 a gentleman in ,england who is very fond of watching insects1 and has found out a great many curious things about them1 has given an account of some of these bees which he noticed at work4 ,every one was carrying out of a hole in the clay-bank a small lump of clay2 and on catching one of them1 he found that this lump was wetter than the clay in the hole1 so that the bee had moistened it1 and worked it together1 to make it stick like good mortar4 ,these lumps too were larger than a shot2 they were as large as a garden-pea4 ,how long did it take them to work up the lump8 ,about half a minute1 ,mr4 ,rennie says4 ,he watched one of these little creatures1 and found that she was building on the inside wall of a coal-house1 where the bricks and mortar were left rough3 she was at work between two of the bricks where the mortar had fallen out1 or where the bee had taken it out4 ,and the conduct of the bee at her house was very different from what it was at the clay-bank4 ,she was not frightened1 but went on working when any one came near the clay-bank2 but at her house she seemed afraid that it should be found out where it was4 ,she would alight first on the roof outside1 as if she merely wished to rest herself2 and when she flew into the coal-house she would not go directly to her nest1 but would settle on a shelf1 and sometimes pretend to be examining a great many places in the wall between different bricks2 and at last1 when she supposed there was no risk1 or when there was nothing to alarm her1 she would fly to her nest1 and go to work with all her might in fixing her piece of clay to the wall4 ,why did she wish her house not to be found out1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,mr4 ,rennie supposed it was her instinct3 she had seen probably some of the insects which would destroy her young1 watching her to see where she was building2 and sometimes after flying nearly to her nest with a load1 she would turn back and fly towards the clay-bank1 or take a large sweep off in another direction1 and so come to her house4 ,besides the mason-bee1 boys1 there is the mason-wasp1 which ,i have heard some persons call the dirt-dauber3 it is very common1 especially in the southern part of the ,united ,states4 ,it works very much like the mason-bee1 only it is apt to fix its nest under the eaves of old houses1 which ,i think the mason-bee never does4 ,there is also another kind of mason-wasp which will actually break a hard brick4 ,mr4 ,rennie says that he saw one at work on a brick of a hard yellow kind4 ,whether the wasp found a hole in the brick to begin with1 he did not know2 but if he did he was hard at work making it larger3 he would break off a piece as large as a mustard-seed at a time4 ,here is a drawing of that kind of wasp2 and the insect is no larger than the picture4 ,illustration3 ,mason-wasp4--,natural size4 ,it seems wonderful that so small an insect should have so much strength4 ,here is a picture of its jaws1 seen through a microscope1 so as to appear a great deal larger than they really are4 ,illustration3 ,jaws of ,mason-wasp4--,greatly magnified4 ,i do not know1 boys1 that the masons we have been talking of1 show us any tools like those with which men who are masons work2 but they show us1 at any rate1 how to make mortar by kneading or working it together2 and they certainly show us that we were not the first who built walls4 ,but there is another kind of mason who works in stone4 ,he picks out the stones which are of proper size1 and he fastens them together with mortar really as men do4 ,pray tell us of him1 ,uncle ,philip4 ,i will4 ,the insect ,i mean is the caddis-worm1 which is to be found sometimes in ponds1 and very often in springs of fresh water4 ,there are several sorts of them1 but the one ,i am thinking of now1 builds a stone house to live in4 ,these worms are in the habit of making a little tube1 sometimes of sand1 or shell1 or wood1 or leaves1 or stones1 to live in2 and their skill consists in joining these perfectly1 and making them stick together4 ,but we are talking now of the caddis-worm that uses stone4 ,what the worm has to do is to make a tube out of small stones1 that shall have a hollow about as large as a wheat straw1 and be perfectly smooth inside4 ,this is a pretty hard task--at least it would be very hard to us4 ,when the stone-mason wishes a stone of a particular size or shape1 and cannot find it1 he takes his hammer and breaks one until it will suit2 but the caddis-worm has no hammer1 and must take the stones just as it finds them4 ,the little insect then has to pick out a great many stones before he gets the right one1 because they have so many little rough points about them that it is very difficult to get those which will make the tube perfectly smooth inside4 ,remember1 too1 that the bottom or lower side of this stone case has to be pretty nearly smooth1 so that the worm can drag it along on the bottom of the spring or pond 7for it never comes out of it71 and you will see that the picking out of the stones alone is no trifle4 ,but besides this1 it has to fasten them together with mortar4 ,and can the worm really do this1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,will not the water wash the mortar all away8 ,it certainly would if it were like common mortar4 ,it was a long time that men lived before they found out a mortar that would remain1 and grow hard under water4 ,when they want to build a wall that is to be under the water1 they use a cement which is called pozzolana2 it is made of lava out of a volcano1 and is water-proof4 ,our caddis-worm has a cement too1 which is better than pozzolana1 and though it has been tried1 it cannot be melted or dissolved in water4 ,here is a drawing of the stone nest of a caddis-worm4 ,illustration3 ,stone ,nest of ,caddis-worm4 ,uncle ,philip1 you said that sometimes these worms built their nests of other things besides stones2 let us hear something of them1 if you please4 ,very willingly1 boys4 ,some build of shells3 here are pictures of their nests4 ,illustration3 ,shell ,nests of ,caddis-worms4 ,some build of leaves1 and others of pieces of reed or light bark4 ,illustration3 ,reed ,nest of ,caddis-worm4 ,and a curious thing about those which build of light pieces of bark or reed is this1 that they will make the top-piece come over so as to hide their heads1 and prevent you from seeing them4 ,some build of sand2 and then as the house would be so light that the water running from the spring might wash it down and carry it away1 the wonderful little creature takes care to anchor it by fastening a pretty large stone to it when it has nearly finished it4 ,and as the worm anchors it when it is too light1 so it lightens it when it is too heavy1 by fixing a bit of light wood or hollow straw to it to buoy it up4 ,illustration3 ,sand ,nest1 balanced with a ,stone4 ,illustration3 ,nest of ,caddis-worm1 balanced with ,straws4 ,well1 this is truly a wonderful insect4 ,uncle ,philip4 ,truly so indeed1 boys4 ,in all these cases it uses its water-proof cement1 and if you break its house to pieces1 and will patiently watch1 you may see it build another4 ,the insect always lives with its head out of doors1 and its body inside2 so that its head is firm and hard1 while its body is soft4 ,uncle ,philip1 said one of the larger boys1 there is one thing ,i have been thinking about1 as you have been talking3 these little masons have no trowel1 but ,i believe ,i know of one animal that uses something like that tool4 ,ah6 ,what animal is it8 ,why1 ,i was reading the other day something about the beavers building their dams and their houses1 and the book said that they built their houses of logs first1 and then plastered them with mud1 and that they used their tails for trowels4 ,i am very glad to find that you remember what you read2 but ,i am sorry that your book did not tell you the truth4 ,there have been very strange stories told about the beaver2 and these stories have been taken from one book and printed in another1 so that an untrue account has gone down for a great many years4 ,the beaver is very ingenious1 but is not quite so much of a mason as you suppose4 ,well1 ,uncle ,philip1 will you tell us the truth about it8 ,yes1 boys1 ,i will1 so far as ,i know it myself4 ,i have seen these animals1 for they were once a great deal more common in our country than they are now2 and many of the stories told of them are not true4 ,but before ,i begin1 let me tell you of one book which ,i think does tell the plain truth about them2 and the truth is curious enough4 ,what book is it1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,it is a book written on ,american ,natural ,history1 by ,doctor ,john ,godman4 ,i knew him1 boys1 and a most excellent man he was4 ,he is now dead--and he died a ,christian4 ,the book he wrote you will find worth reading1 when you get old enough to understand it4 ,but now for the beaver4 ,his tail is very broad and flat at the end1 and might be used very well for a trowel2 but when he builds his house he does not cut down trees1 and place them first1 and then fill up the cracks with mud-mortar2 but all the sticks and mud 7and stones too when the beaver can get them71 are first mixed up together1 and the beaver builds his house with this from the very foundation4 ,as soon as he has placed a lump of this stuff upon the wall1 he turns round and gives it a blow with his flat tail2 and that1 boys1 is all he does with his tail for a trowel4 ,sometimes he slaps his tail upon the water when he is swimming2 and some persons have supposed that this was done by the king1 or ruler1 to call his workmen4 ,it may be so1 but ,i do not believe it1 because they almost always dive as soon as they have slapped the water2 and ,i think it is probably a part of their motion in diving4 ,in the autumn they cover the outside of their houses with mud1 and they walk over it as they are at work1 and their tails drag along upon it2 and this ,i expect made persons first suppose that they were plastering it1 with the tail for a trowel4 ,when they are caught and kept1 boys1 they still keep up this fashion of slapping with the tail2 so that ,i rather think it is part of the nature of the animal4 ,at another time1 perhaps1 ,i will tell you more about the beaver2 but it is now late1 and ,i must bid you good morning4 ,good day1 ,uncle ,philip4 ,,conversation ,,vii4 ,uncle ,philip talks to the ,children about ,animals that throw ,dirt with a ,spade2 and about an ,animal with a ,hook2 and about one that is a ,wire-drawer4 ,boys1 ,i have some men at work digging a small ditch for me1 and ,i wish to see them2 will you go with me8 ,oh1 yes--very gladly1 ,uncle ,philip2 for you will be sure to tell us of something curious before we come home4 ,come on1 then3 yonder are the men at work2 they have been very industrious1 ,i see4 ,but1 ,uncle ,philip1 look6 ,there is one of the men putting a bottle to his mouth4 ,is that right8 ,yes1 boys1 right enough2 for the bottle has nothing but molasses and water in it2 and the man is thirsty1 ,i suppose4 ,i would not employ him if he brought a bottle of spirits out with him1 for two reasons4 ,in the first place1 ,i think that ,i ought not to encourage a man who gets drunk1 by employing him2 for ,i would rather give my money to a sober man who will not spend it for rum and brandy1 but will take care of his family3 and1 in the second place1 a drunkard would not work faithfully without being watched all the time4 ,i never knew a drunkard who was really and honestly an industrious man4 ,see1 ,uncle ,philip1 how strong that man is2 what a large spadeful of dirt he throws out6 ,yes1 ,i see1 boys3 do you think that men had the first spades in the world8 ,ah6 now you are going to tell us something about tools among animals3 that is good2 we like to hear of that4 ,what animal is it that has a spade8 ,oh1 a very common animal indeed in some parts of our country4 ,the country people call it a woodchuk1 and sometimes a ground-hog3 its right name is the marmot2 and as there are several sorts1 ours is called the ,maryland marmot1 to distinguish it2 but it is in ,new-,york1 ,connecticut1 ,new-,jersey4 ,pennsylvania1 ,virginia1 and some of the other states1 as well as in ,maryland4 ,this is rather a mischievous animal1 and does harm to the clover-fields2 but it is in making his house that he uses his spade4 ,then he digs his house in the ground4 ,uncle ,philip8 ,yes2 he burrows1 or digs his nest in banks of earth1 or on the sides of hills2 and he has sense enough to make the passage to the inside upwards1 instead of downwards1 so that water cannot run in4 ,in digging soft earth he uses his fore-paws to loosen the dirt1 for his fore-legs are very strong2 and if the ground is hard he will use his teeth too4 ,as he gets farther in1 he throws the dirt with his fore-paws under his belly1 and when he has a heap gathered1 he balances himself on his fore-feet1 and begins to throw it out with his spades4 ,what are his spades1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,his hinder feet1 boys1 which are very broad1 and just fit to take up the dirt as a spade does1 and to throw it from him3 there is a skin which grows between the toes of his hinder feet1 so that he can spread them out when he chooses1 like a duck's foot4 ,but1 ,uncle ,philip1 perhaps they are made so for the sake of swimming2 the duck's are4 ,that is a sensible thought1 boys4 ,always think for yourselves2 and when you make a mistake1 try again3 everybody is mistaken sometimes4 ,let it teach you to be modest and humble2 but do not be afraid to think again4 ,a person who is always thinking cannot always think wrong4 ,now you suppose the marmot's feet may be made like a duck's for swimming3 let me tell you something else1 and we shall see what you will think then4 ,the marmot hates a rain as much as you would if you had no umbrella2 he very seldom even drinks water1 and then only a little2 and you cannot drive him into a stream or pond2 he is afraid of it4 ,what do you think now8 ,why1 ,uncle ,philip1 we think that he is no swimmer4 ,very true1 boys3 so his feet1 then1 you now think1 were made for spades1 and not for paddles8 ,we do4 ,can you tell us any thing more about this animal1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,oh yes4 ,the burrows or holes of the marmot run a great distance under ground1 and end in several chambers or rooms1 according to the number that is to live in them4 ,they make beds in them of dry leaves1 or grass1 or any thing soft and dry which they can find4 ,they cram their mouths full of it to carry1 when they are making their nests4 ,as soon as cold weather begins1 the animal goes into his house1 and stops up the hole on the inside2 and there he stays till the warm weather has come again4 ,he is quite a thief at times4 ,i saw one once which a gentleman had tamed1 and he played about the yard2 but every thing that he could get hold of which was fit to make his bed of1 he was sure to steal1 and carry into his hole under ground4 ,when clothes were hung out to dry he would take them off the line1 and as soon as any were missed the washerwoman knew very well where they were4 ,she kept a long stick with a hook at the end of it1 and with this she drew them out of the burrow4 ,he soon found out what it meant1 and whenever she used the stick1 it was necessary first to tie him up2 for he did not choose to have his bed spoiled1 and would run to the hole and try to get in1 and prevent the clothes from being drawn out4 ,one day he stole eight pairs of stockings1 a towel1 and a little girl's frock2 and he carried them into his burrow as far as six feet from the entrance4 ,but1 boys1 as we have begun this morning upon the old subject of tools among animals4 ,i will tell you of something which1 though not exactly a tool1 is a very useful instrument1 and is found belonging to a very common creature4 ,did you ever take notice of a bat8 ,oh yes1 ,uncle ,philip1 often1 as they were flying about in a room at night1 but not nearer4 ,then you never saw what ,i mean1 ,i expect4 ,our common bat1 boys1 has two very excellent hooks2 one on each of what you call its wings3 ,i say what you call its wings1 because the bat is not really a bird1 but a quadruped2 that is1 an animal with four feet3 and when it is on the ground1 any one may see that it is a four-footed animal4 ,if a monkey's paw should be flattened out very much1 it would be something like a bat's paw or hand4 ,the long finger-bones are just like the sticks of an umbrella2 there is a thin skin between them1 and they stretch it out1 so that the air underneath will keep them up4 ,when they are on the ground all this is folded up4 ,their hinder feet have five toes1 all small1 and ending in sharp claws4 ,on the fore-feet there is but one finger which the bat can use much1 because the others are like umbrella-sticks1 as ,i told you2 and the end of that one is a hook4 ,here is a picture1 in which you can see it plainly4 ,illustration ,when the bat is on the ground1 it is hard work for it to get along4 ,at first it will reach forward a little to one side the hooked end of its fore-leg1 and stick it in the ground2 then it draws its hind-legs under its belly1 and raising itself up1 just tumbles forward its whole body4 ,at the next step it stretches out the other fore-leg1 and hooks it1 as it did before1 and drawing itself up1 tumbles forward again4 ,the bat does not like a level place1 because it cannot raise itself in the air from it4 ,when they rest1 they hang by the hooks2 and here is a drawing of one1 resting4 ,in the other picture which ,i showed you just now the bat was flying4 ,illustration ,uncle ,philip1 we did not know before that bats were such curious things2 we always thought that they were birds2 but if these pictures are like them1 these hooks are as good as fish-hooks4 ,the pictures1 boys1 are very much like the animal1 and the hooks are just as plain as they seem to be in the drawings4 ,but how often do you suppose that you have seen a bat8 ,oh1 many hundreds of times2 for they are very common4 ,true1 boys2 and yet you never knew before that they had hooks about them4 ,suppose that everybody had done as you have1 just passed by the bats1 without taking notice of them2 ,i could not have told you then what strange creatures they are1 for no person would have known any thing about them4 ,you see1 then1 that men may have eyes1 and yet not see things2 because they will not look for them4 ,use your eyes1 boys2 ,god made them to be used4 ,but1 ,uncle ,philip1 bats are such ugly things6 and they can bite1 too4 ,we are afraid of them4 ,ugly1 boys6 ,and what of that8 ,will you look at nothing but what is handsome8 ,if the bat could think and speak1 ,i expect he would call you very ugly4 ,but it is foolish1 boys1 to be afraid of these smaller animals4 ,there are many creatures which might hurt you1 and ,i would advise you to keep out of their way3 but it is silly to be afraid of every poor little insect or animal which you see4 ,i have seen a large boy cry when he saw a poor little caterpillar or bug near him4 ,now there are very few insects1 indeed1 which can or will hurt you2 and a great many of them you may watch without touching them at all4 ,and ,i think that he is a wicked and cruel boy who kills every poor bug that he sees1 merely because he is stronger than the bug4 ,it would be a great deal kinder and wiser in the boy to notice what the bug was doing1 for then he might learn something worth knowing4 ,but1 ,uncle ,philip1 is it wrong to kill spiders8 ,spiders6 ,why1 boys1 the spider is one of the very last of these little creatures that ,i should wish to kill4 ,there is not a more curious little animal in the world1 nor one that will pay a man better for watching its motions4 ,at some other time ,i will tell you all about spiders and ants1 for ,i have noticed them a great deal3 but now1 just to show you how much you would lose if you should kill all the spiders1 ,i will talk with you about a tool which man uses1 and which he might have learned to make from a spider4 ,oh1 do tell us2 what is it8 ,the next time you go to ,mr4 ,brown's1 the silversmith1 ask him to show you his plate for drawing out wire4 ,tell him that ,i told you to ask him1 and he will show it to you4 ,you will see a flat piece of steel with holes made through it in regular lines1 beginning with a large size1 and growing smaller and smaller until the last is very small indeed4 ,now the wire is drawn through these holes2 beginning at the larger ones1 and passing every time through the next smaller one1 it stretches the wire out1 until it becomes as small as the workman wishes it to be4 ,the spider is a wire-drawer1 too2 for it has a contrivance to draw out its threads1 and make them smaller or larger1 as it pleases4 ,if you will look at a very large spider1 you can see with your naked eye1 just at the end of its body1 four1 and sometimes six1 little knobs like teats1 with a circle around them4 ,these are its spinners4 ,each one of these small knobs1 inside of that circle1 is so full of little holes or tubes1 that ,mr4 ,reaumur 7of whom ,i told you before1 you will recollect7 calculated that a place no larger than the point of a pin had a thousand of these little holes in it4 ,these holes are sometimes so very small1 that another gentleman1#h who looked at spiders through a microscope very often1 thought it would take four millions of the threads which came through those holes to make one thread as thick as a hair of his beard4 ,here is a picture of a spider hanging by a thread coming out of its spinner1 or1 as it is sometimes called1 its spinneret4 ,illustration ,then1 ,uncle ,philip1 the spider does not spin its thread all at once8 ,no1 boys4 ,fine as you see that thread to be1 it is not one single line1 but it is made of many thousands joined together4 ,the spiders have little bags of gum within their bodies1 near their spinners1 and out of these they draw the threads3 when they have come out about the tenth part of an inch1 they join them all into one with their claws2 and they can shut their spinners when they please1 so as to make the threads longer or shorter2 and they can break them off1 too1 when they wish4 ,but1 ,uncle ,philip1 we do not see why there should be so many threads to make up one4 ,i cannot exactly tell you1 boys1 why there are so many2 but probably to make the thread dry quicker1 by letting the air touch so many parts of it3 and ,i expect1 too1 the thread is stronger1 because we know that in two pieces of cord of one size1 if one is made of several smaller cords put together1 it will be stronger than the other1 which was spun all at once4 ,the following is a picture of the spider's spinnerets1 and some of the threads as it appears through the microscope2 only you must recollect that all the threads are not drawn3 there are a great many more than you see in the picture4 ,illustration3 ,spider's ,threads coming from the ,spinnerets4 ,,footnote3 #h ,leuwenhoek4 ,,conversation ,,viii4 ,uncle ,philip tells the ,children of a ,door1 with a ,hinge and ,spring to it1 made by a ,spider2 and shows them ,pictures to let them see the ,difference between ,god's ,work and ,man's4 ,i was thinking1 boys1 last night1 of what you said about killing the poor spiders2 and ,i was sorry that ,i did not then recollect one thing about a spider which ,i could have told you1 and which would have made you like the poor little creatures better4 ,however1 ,i determined that when you came to see me again1 it should be the first thing ,i would tell you1 if you wished to hear it4 ,wish to hear it6 ,why1 ,uncle ,philip1 we always wish to hear you tell us of any thing that you please to talk about4 ,you have told us of a great many strange things1 about which we knew nothing before2 and we will thank you to tell us the story about the spider4 ,very well1 boys2 you shall hear it4 ,pray1 do you not think that it is a piece of difficult work to make a door to a house1 and to make hinges to hang it with1 and to fit it so nicely that when it is done you cannot see the joints where the door is shut8 ,indeed it is a piece of very hard work4 ,uncle ,philip1 and it takes the carpenter a long time to do it2 and it is hard work1 too1 for the blacksmith to make the hinges4 ,but what has that to do with the story about the spider8 ,patience1 boys1 patience3 you shall know presently4 ,never be in too great a hurry3 it is a bad plan4 ,i have always noticed that those persons who hurried most1 went slowest in the end4 ,another question ,i wish to ask you is this1--do you not think it was hard work for the first man who ever made a spring1 and put it on a door1 to make it shut itself again when it had been opened8 ,yes1 it was so3 and the man who does it now gets well paid for it4 ,very good1 boys4 ,and now what will you say when ,i tell you that a poor little spider did all these things long before man did8 ,what1 ,uncle ,philip6 ,a spider make a door with a hinge and a spring to make it shut itself6 ,yes1 boys2 a spider4 ,do you think he deserves to be killed for doing it8 ,oh no1 no6 ,but pray tell us all about it4 ,uncle ,philip4 ,this kind of spider1 then1 boys1 ,i saw in ,jamaica1 and ,i saw its house1 too4 ,it is called the mason-spider4 ,the nest or house which ,i saw was a tube made of very hard clay1 about six inches long1 and an inch across1 and was a little bent at one end4 ,the inside of this tube was lined all the way through with a kind of soft silky stuff1 something like silk-paper1 but stronger1 and it was of a yellowish colour2 but the curious part was the door4 ,i never saw any thing which an insect had made more strange than that4 ,this door was round1 about as large as a quarter of a dollar1 and was a little hollowed on the upper side like a saucer2 the inside of it was rounded like the outside of the saucer4 ,it was of the same stuff with the lining of the nest1 and seemed to be made of more than a dozen pieces of that lining1 put one on the top of another3 it was shaped so1 too1 that the inside layers or pieces were the broadest1 and the outside ones became smaller and smaller1 except at the hinge1 which was about an inch long4 ,all the pieces in the door were joined into this hinge1 and then the hinge was joined and worked into the lining in the tube4 ,that made the hinge the thickest and strongest part of the whole work4 ,how the spider made it so1 boys1 ,i cannot tell2 but so it was1 that this hinge not only was a hinge1 but was so good a spring1 that whenever the door was opened it would shut itself immediately3 and when shut1 it fitted so nicely that it was very difficult to see the place of joining4 ,well1 ,uncle ,philip1 this is most wonderful6 ,but will not the hinge wear out at last8 ,wonderful as it is1 boys1 it is all true4 ,as to its wearing out1 ,i cannot tell you2 but ,i know that a gentleman who had one1 said that his friends were very anxious to see it2 and there were so many of them1 that he had to open the door and let it shut itself many hundreds of times to satisfy them2 and it did not hurt the spring at all4 ,uncle ,philip1 we shall not kill the poor spiders any more4 ,a good resolution1 boys3 only let them alone1 and they will not hurt you4 ,there is another kind of mason-spider1 which ,i never saw1 but ,i have read of it4 ,it is found in the south of ,france2 ,i did not happen1 however1 to meet with one while ,i was in that beautiful country4 ,this kind digs a gallery or hole under ground as much as a foot deep4 ,she lines it with a sort of silk glued to the walls1 and makes her door1 which is round also1 with many layers of mud or earth all kneaded and bound together with some of her silk4 ,on the outside1 the door is flat and rough1 to make it appear like the dirt around it1 and hide it2 on the inside it is shaped like the inside of the door of the other spider ,i have told you about2 and all covered with a coat of fine silk4 ,the threads of this silk are left long on one side1 and fastened to the upper part of the hole2 and these make the hinge4 ,there is no spring to this2 but when the spider pushes its door open and comes out1 it shuts again by its own weight4 ,if this door is forced open by any one when the spider is at home1 she will catch hold of it and pull it in2 and sometimes even when it is half-opened2 she will snatch it out of the hand4 ,here is a picture which shows the nest open1 and another of it shut2 and there is a drawing of the spider1 too4 ,illustration3 ,a1 the ,nest shut2 ,b1 the ,nest open2 ,c1 the ,spider2 ,d1 the ,eyes1 magnified2 ,e1 ,f1 ,parts of the ,foot and ,claw magnified4 ,a gentleman says1 in a book which he wrote about insects1 that he once broke one of these doors off1 to see what the spider would do4 ,and what did she do1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,she made another door2 but took very good care not to put any hinge to it1 for fear she should be disturbed again4 ,but when she thought all danger was gone1 she could then put a hinge to it1 you know2 and probably she did4 ,well1 ,uncle ,philip1 we thank you again for this account of the spiders1 and shall always look at them hereafter with more pleasure4 ,who would have thought that we should ever find doors and hinges among such little creatures1 and these too so very well made and fitted6 ,why1 boys1 ,i have noticed the works of ,god very often2 and ,i will now tell you one thing which ,i always found4 ,it is this3 a piece of the very best work which man can make is really coarse when you compare it with the work of ,god4 ,the poor spider that we have talked about1 when she makes her door1 makes it to fit perfectly2 because in doing that one thing1 ,god made her to know perfectly how to do it4 ,the knowledge is ,god's1 boys2 but the work is the spider's3 but in making any thing else1 except about her house1 the spider knows nothing4 ,uncle ,philip1 you told us once that you were very fond of watching all sorts of dumb animals1 and we think now that we know the reason4 ,well1 what is it8 ,it is because you see so much of ,god's knowledge in them2 is it not8 ,yes1 my dear boys1 it is4 ,when ,i look at many things which man makes or does1 ,i think to myself1 ',now this thing is likely to have a mixture of sense and nonsense in it2 the sense is ,god's1 and the nonsense is man's4' ,but when ,i look at a thing made by one of the dumb creatures for its own comfort and safety1 like the spider's house1 with its door and hinge1 for instance1 ,i say to myself1 ',now here is the wisdom of ,god1 without any of man's nonsense4' ,and yet1 boys1 men are far wiser than any other animal in this world4 ,but1 ,uncle ,philip1 you said that a piece of man's best work was really coarse3 some things must be neat1 we should think4 ,is the point of a needle coarse8 ,it does not seem so4 ,boys1 you have mentioned the very thing which was in my mind when ,i spoke4 ,the point of the smallest needle is very coarse4 ,you have heard me talk of the microscope4 ,i told you it was a set of glasses1 so fixed that when you looked through them1 it made small things appear very large3 on some other day1 perhaps1 ,i will let you look through my microscope for yourselves2 but now1 ,i just wish to show you the difference between the work of ,god and that of man4 ,let us go home1 and ,i will show you some pictures ,i made1 and you can see in them the difference4 ,last winter1 you know1 was very cold1 and there was a great deal of snow3 one day1 while the snow was falling pretty fast1 ,i was obliged to go out2 and as the flakes of snow fell upon the sleeve of my coat 7which was black71 ,i thought they had a curious shape1 and did not all appear alike2 so when ,i returned home ,i caught some of the flakes1 and looked at them through my microscope4 ,they were so beautiful that ,i made pictures of them2 and as we have now reached home1 just let me step into my study1 and ,i will bring them to you4 ,here they are1 boys4 ,illustration3 ,snow-flakes1 seen through a ,microscope4 ,oh1 ,uncle ,philip6 these are very pretty2 they are all so different1 too6 ,yes1 boys1 ,i picked out different ones to draw3 when ,i was done1 ,i began to look into my books to find out what others had written about this thing2 and ,i found that a gentleman named ,dr4 ,hook had seen more than a hundred different shapes and sizes of these flakes4 ,this is ,god's work1 boys4 ,now ,i have brought you out another picture3 it is the point of a very small needle1 seen through the very same microscope which showed me the snow-flakes4 ,just look at it1 boys4 ,this is man's work4 ,illustration3 ,the ,point of a very small ,needle1 seen through the ,microscope4 ,,conversation ,,ix4 ,uncle ,phillip tells the ,boys a ,story about a ,philosopher and his ,kite4--,he tells them1 too1 about ,ants that have ,awls1 and build ,cities1 and ,stairs1 and ,bridges1 and many other things4 ,so1 boys1 you have come again to see me4 ,i am very glad of it2 for as this is a leisure day1 we shall have time enough to talk3 but what is that you have there8 ,oh1 ,i see now2 it is a kite4 ,yes1 ,uncle ,philip2 it is a ,french kite that we have been making1 and we have come to ask you to go out with us this morning and see us fly it4 ,very good1 boys2 ,i will go4 ,i am an old man now2 but ,i remember that ,i was a boy once1 and loved to make a kite sail4 ,it always makes me happy to see boys and girls playing about in health1 provided they are not wasting time1 and their play is not to do harm to anybody or any thing4 ,so come on2 we will go out upon the green common yonder1 behind the church1 and ,i think we shall have a grand kite-flying1 for the wind is about right4 ,there1 boys6 up she goes6 ,let out the string4 ,i think she behaves very well2 there1 she is done pitching about3 now she is steady2 see how she mounts4 ,ah1 that is a very good kite4 ,uncle ,philip1 ,i was reading a book yesterday which said1 ',a philosopher once found great help from a kite4' ,what did it mean8 ,do you know what a philosopher is8 ,yes1 ,uncle ,philip2 a philosopher is the same thing with a very wise man1 is it not8 ,that is pretty near the meaning4 ,philosopher means a person who loves wisdom2 and such a person1 you know1 will always be trying to get knowledge2 and a person who is always trying to get knowledge is apt to be a wise and learned man4 ,well1 how could a kite help a man to get learning8 ,did he read the old newspapers it was made of8 ,i cannot see any other way4 ,but there may be another way without your seeing it1 you know4 ,the philosopher whom your book meant was ,dr4 ,franklin4 ,did you ever hear of him8 ,oh1 yes2 he was born in ,boston1 and was a printer1 and afterward became a very great man4 ,that is true4 ,he was a man of excellent sense1 who both read and thought a great deal2 and in the war which the people of this country had with ,england to get their freedom4 ,dr4 ,franklin's sound sense was of great use to his countrymen4 ,but1 ,uncle ,philip1 how did the kite help him8 ,i will tell you4 ,if you take a proper piece of glass1 or sulphur1 or sealing-wax1 or rosin1 and rub it for some time1 and then hold it near to small bits of thread or paper1 the thread or paper will fly towards the glass or sealing-wax1 and stick to it for a short time4 ,that which makes them fly to the glass and stick there1 is called electricity4 ,after this was found out1 men went on slowly finding out more and more1 until at last a man named ,hawksbee made a large machine with a glass barrel1 which could be turned around by a handle like that which you see to a grindstone2 and with this machine 7which ,i will show you at some other time7 he managed to get a great deal of this electricity1 and it would shoot off in sparks1 which appeared like little lightning4 ,and now1 boys1 what ,i am going to tell you will show you the use of a man's eyes4 ,dr4 ,franklin knew all about the electrical machine1 and was very fond of drawing off the sparks from it1 to see what he could find out about it4 ,and when he saw it appeared so much like lightning1 and could feel too a spark strike his hand a smart blow1 he began to think that perhaps it was exactly the same thing with the lightning which came from the clouds2 so he determined1 if he could1 to find out whether it was or not4 ,he was a great deal troubled for some time to know how he should get down any of the lightning from the clouds2 until at last1 one day1 he saw a boy flying a kite2 and that showed him the way4 ,so he took a large silk handkerchief1 and stretching it upon sticks1 soon made his kite2 and not long afterward1 when he saw a black thunder-cloud coming up1 he took his kite and walked out of ,philadelphia 7where he then lived7 into the fields1 and sent his kite up4 ,he had a string like yours1 made of hemp1 and to the end of this he tied an iron key1 and then fastening it to the post of a shed by a silk cord1 which he tied to the end of the hemp string1 he got under the shed1 and waited a long time4 ,now1 boys1 if he had been impatient1 all his work would have been of no use4 ,but he even waited1 after a very heavy cloud had passed over his kite without giving it any of its lightning4 ,at last1 when he was almost ready to give it up and go home1 he saw some loose threads on the hemp string rise and stand up straight1 just as he knew the electrical machine would make them do4 ,he directly put his knuckle to the iron key1 and off came the spark1 which he knew at once was exactly like the spark which he could get from the machine4 ,and so1 boys1 he found out what he wished to know2 and this was the way in which the kite helped the philosopher4 ,well1 ,uncle ,philip1 this is really a very pretty story about ,dr4 ,franklin and his kite4 ,was anybody with him8 ,nobody but his son2 he took him out to help him raise the kite4 ,but1 boys1 ,i see the other lads are walking on towards the bridge with our kite2 let us follow them1 and as we go1 ,i will tell you of an electric animal4 ,oh1 we shall be very glad to hear of him4 ,listen1 then4 ,there is a kind of eel1 which when it is touched will give a very hard blow1 just like an electric shock1 to the person who touches it4 ,is there any spark1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,no1 boys2 there is no spark1--but the blow is tremendous4 ,i remember reading of one of these fish which was caught in a net1 and a foolish sailor would take it up1 though he was told it would hurt him4 ,the fish shocked him so violently that he fell down in a fit1 and it was a long time before he came to his senses2 and his story was1 that the moment he touched the fish1 'the cold ran swiftly up his arm into his body1 and pierced him to the heart4' ,the fish has this power to defend itself1 and to kill other fish for food4 ,but1 ,uncle ,philip1 how do they ever manage to catch them alive8 ,i should think they would be shocked to death4 ,i will tell you4 ,a very sensible traveller and learned man#i gives an account of the manner in which they catch them1 by a way called1 by the ,south ,american ,indians1 'fishing with horses4' ,fishing with horses6 ,what does that mean8 ,the savannas1 or large open plains1 in ,south ,america have a great many wild horses and mules running over them4 ,m4 ,humboldt says that the ,indians caught about thirty of these1 and drove them into the pond where the electrical eels were4 ,the horses made a great noise1 and stirred up the mud with their hoofs1 and this brought up the eels from the bottom in a great rage4 ,they were very large1 and looked more like water-snakes than like eels2 and rising to the top of the water1 they crowded under the bellies of the horses and mules1 and began to shock them4 ,the poor horses would try to get out of the pond2 but the ,indians1 with spears and long reeds1 would stand around to hinder them from coming out3 some of them1 too1 would climb upon the trees around the banks1 and get out upon the branches which were over the pond1 and by crying out aloud1 and using their long reeds1 kept the horses in the pond4 ,the eels would continue to shock them with tremendous blows1 and a great many of the poor creatures were either stunned or killed1 and would sink4 ,those not killed would pant and raise their heads1 while their eyes would show their pain1 and they would try to get out4 ,the ,indians still drove them back1 but some few escaped1 and reached the shore1 stumbling at every step1 and would stretch themselves on the bank1 tired out1 and benumbed in their limbs by the shocks they had received4 ,m4 ,humboldt says that in less than five minutes after the fight began1 two horses were drowned2 and he thought that the end of it would be1 that every horse which did not get out of the water would be killed3 but at last the eels became tired1 and began to disperse4 ,this is just what the ,indians wish4 ,they know that the eels have spent so much of their electrical power that they will need a long rest4 ,it takes them a great while to get back their strength2 so that if1 the next day after such a fight1 you send in more horses1 they cannot kill one4 ,when the eels1 tired out in this way1 begin to separate1 they will swim to the edge of the pond1 and there the ,indians take them with small harpoons fastened to long cords4 ,when the cords are dry1 the ,indian feels no shock in raising the eel out of the water4 ,in this way ,m4 ,humboldt got five1 all alive1 and very little hurt4 ,but here we are at the bridge4 ,uncle ,philip1 suppose we sit down under the shade of this tree1 and rest4 ,i am willing1 boys2 but take care of the damp ground3 there is an old piece of timber that the men have taken out of the bridge1 for ,i see they have been mending it2 we will sit on that4 ,but1 ,uncle ,philip1 what shall we do with the kite8 shall we draw it down8 ,do with it6 ,why1 just tie the end of your string to that root1 and it will take care of itself in this wind4 ,what a monstrous piece of timber this is4 ,uncle ,philip6 ,it must have taken a great many men to move it2 and see--there are some larger ones still in the bridge4 ,it must be a difficult work to build a bridge4 ,yes1 it is so3 but there are bridges much harder to build than our little wooden one here4 ,some are built of stone1 and it takes years to finish them4 ,none but a good workman can plan and build a good stone bridge3 but ,i know a little fellow that can make as good a bridge as anybody2 and yet no man ever taught him the trade4 ,ah6 now we know what is coming4 ,you are going to tell us of a dumb animal that can make a bridge4 ,yes1 ,i am3 and a small animal it is1 too1 for it is an ant4 ,what sort of an ant is it8 ,it is called the white ant2 and as there is a great deal that is very curious about this insect4 ,i think that ,i had better tell you all about it at once4 ,pray do1 ,uncle ,philip2 you know you promised to tell us about ants4 ,true1 boys2 and ,i like to keep my promises4 ,in my story about these ants1 ,i think1 if you attend1 you will find more tools2 and besides that1 you will hear of a great many things which man makes1 and which show matters quite as strange as any of which ,i have yet told you4 ,what are they1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,they are the building of something like a city1 and bridges1 and stairs1 and roads1 and tunnels under ground1 and-- ,oh1 let us hear--let us hear6 ,we have heard nothing equal to this yet4 ,well1 then1 ,i begin by telling you that these insects are very common in ,africa1 and in the ,east ,indies1 and are troublesome enough1 for they eat almost every thing but metal and glass4 ,they love wood1 though1 better than any thing else2 and they are so numerous that they destroy it wonderfully fast4 ,they are very cunning1 too2 they never eat the outside of the wood first1 but will work upon the inside1 so as to leave the outer part not thicker than a piece of pasteboard4 ,but the curious things ,i meant to tell you were about their city2 so ,i will go on to that4 ,when they first begin to build you will see little hills shaped like a sugar-loaf1 and rising up above the ground about a foot1 or a little more4 ,here is a picture of them4 ,illustration ,the highest of these little hills is always in the middle2 and they go on building more and more1 and making them all higher1 still keeping the tallest one in the centre4 ,when they have made them as high as they wish1 then they fill in the spaces between the tops of all these sugar-loaf hills1 so as to make one roof over all4 ,here is a picture of one finished4 ,illustration ,after this is done1 they take down nearly all of the little sugar-loaf hills inside2 for they only wanted them for a scaffold to support the top while they were building it4 ,uncle ,philip1 what is all this built of8 ,it is built of clay1 which the ant makes almost as hard as stone4 ,are they strong1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,so strong1 boys1 that five men may stand on them2 and it is a common thing for the wild bulls to get upon them and look out1 while the rest of the herd are feeding below4 ,why1 how high are they8 ,oh1 of different heights2 some as many as five or six feet1 others are twelve1 and the largest are as high as twenty feet1 and would easily hold a dozen men4 ,and how large are the ants1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,not above a quarter of an inch high as they stand4 ,now1 boys1 just compare the size of one of these nests with the size of the ant that made it2 and it is quite as large in proportion as the city of ,new-,york is when compared to a man's size2 yes1 it is a great deal larger in proportion4 ,these nests are sometimes five hundred times as high as the ants which build them3 now suppose that men built their houses five hundred times as high as themselves1 and as large at the foundation in proportion to their height1 what monstrous buildings they would be6 ,but let me go on4 ,this outside shell1 which ,i have been telling you how they make1 is nothing but the wall of the city2 the buildings are all inside of that4 ,but1 ,uncle ,philip1 there is one thing ,i have been thinking of which would make it more like a city still4 ,but ,i hardly think they can have that4 ,what is it8 ,why in a city1 you know1 where there are a great many people1 there are a great many trades3 some do one thing and some do another to get money4 ,yes1 that is true2 and ,i am glad that you mentioned it1 because it reminds me of one thing ,i intended to tell you about these ants4 ,now1 it would not be reasonable1 you know1 to expect the ants to have many different kinds of business to do1 as the people in ,new-,york have2 but still1 boys1 they are not all alike1 and they do have work of different kinds4 ,there are in the city of the white ants a king and a queen1 and soldiers1 and labourers1 or workmen1 and all these are different4 ,here are pictures which will show them all to you4 ,this is the king4 ,illustration3 ,king of the ,termites4 ,at first he has four wings1 but soon loses them4 ,he never grows any larger after he loses them4 ,the king may be known by his having two large eyes4 ,here is the queen4 ,she is the mother of the whole city2 and you see what a large body she has4 ,it is full of eggs1 and eighty thousand will come from her in twenty-four hours4 ,she also has two eyes4 ,illustration3 ,queen of the ,termites4 ,here is a soldier3 he has a large head1 armed with two hooks1 shaped like a crooked awl1 and very sharp4 ,illustration3 ,soldier of the ,termites4 ,for every one of these soldiers there are about one hundred labourers4 ,the soldiers do the fighting2 and though they are perfectly blind1 they fight well1 and are very brave4 ,the following is a picture1 too1 of the soldiers' awls1 seen through the microscope1 to show you how sharp they are4 ,illustration ,and here is a picture of the labourer2 the largest part of the city is made up of the labourers1--which shows us1 ,i think1 boys1 that there is more need of working than there is of fighting4 ,illustration3 ,labourer of the ,termites4 ,this class1 like the soldiers1 is blind1 and scarcely ever go into the open air2 their work is mostly under ground or in the inside of wood4 ,both1 however1 do come out when their city is attacked and broken3 but ,i will tell you of that presently4 ,,footnote3 #i ,m4 ,humboldt4 ,,conversation ,x4 ,uncle ,philip tells the ,children more about the ,white ,ants4 ,now1 boys1 as ,i have told you about the kinds of different work which these ants do1 we will go on1 and ,i will tell you about the inside of the city4 ,the first thing to be done is to build a house for the king and queen4 ,this is the first house built in the city1 and always stands in the centre1 directly under the point of the roof or top of the outside wall4 ,it is built nearly on a level with the ground1 and is shaped very much like a long oven1 or the half of an egg split through the long way4 ,the floor is exactly level1 and about an inch thick2 the roof is about the same thickness4 ,the doors are on a level with the floor1 and just large enough to let one of the labourers go in4 ,why1 ,uncle ,philip1 how do the king and queen ever get out then4 ,they never do get out1 boys2 they live in that house always1 and they are not the first kings and queens who have found that a palace is sometimes a prison4 ,just around this house of the king and queen are other houses built of clay1 arched at the top1 and of different shapes4 ,these are for the servants or labouring ants1 who remove the eggs of the queen as fast as she discharges them4 ,the soldiers also live in these houses4 ,next to these are the magazines1 that is1 the houses where they keep their food1 such as dry juices of trees and gums2 and mixed up with these are the nurseries4 ,these are made by the labourers1 and are different from all the other buildings1 for they are made of wood gnawed or broken into fine threads1 and joined together with some kind of gum1 and around each of them there is a case of clay4 ,these nurseries are to carry the eggs into for the young ants to be hatched4 ,between all these different houses or parts there are thousands of galleries or ways1 which run among them and separate them from each other1 and these may be called the streets of the city4 ,these streets run in all directions1 and extend as far as the outside wall2 and houses are built on top of houses1 and streets run over streets1 until they reach up as high as two-thirds of the inside wall4 ,but under the top of their outside case they always leave a large open place that is never filled up with houses4 ,and around this space they will build three or four large arches1 sometimes two or three feet high2 these ,i suppose are to prevent the houses from falling in towards the centre of the city1 which is an open space1 and on the other side they are fastened to the outside walls1 so that these houses are very firm4 ,and what is all this made of1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,all of clay1 except the nurseries1 which ,i told you were made of wood and gum4 ,over the house of the king and queen there is a sort of flat floor1 some distance above it1 with nurseries and magazines between the under side of it and the top of the queen's house4 ,this floor will not let the water through it1 so as to wet the palace where the king and queen live1 but will turn it off into large trenches or gutters under ground1 of which ,i will speak directly4 ,the bridge ,i told you of they build from this floor in the open space1 directly under the top or dome of the outside wall2 it rises up and is joined to some hole in the side wall of the houses above it4 ,how large is it1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,why1 sometimes it is half an inch broad1 a quarter of an inch thick1 and ten inches long2 all made of clay1 so that it is very strange how they manage to join it to the wall without its falling down by its own weight while they were building it4 ,and what do you suppose this bridge is for1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,why1 ,i think there can be no doubt what it is for4 ,when the city has been growing for some time1 some of the nurseries will be very high up above the queen's house2 but the labourers have to carry her eggs into them1 no matter how far off they may be4 ,if they carry them through all the streets1 they will have to walk as many as fifteen or twenty feet1 for it would be five or six feet in a perfectly straight line1 and these streets are very crooked2 but if they make a bridge in the open space in the centre1 they can then go from the queen's house over the bridge1 and get to the upper nurseries without travelling more than two feet4 ,so they made the bridge to shorten the way1 to be sure4 ,this is very wonderful3 but you said something about large trenches or gutters underground2 what are they1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,these galleries lead from the city under ground1 and are as large as the bore of a large cannon2 they are thirteen inches across1 and more than a hundred yards long4 ,i have already told you that the labourers never come out into the light1 when they can help it2 and these underground ways are the great roads to the city1 to fetch in clay1 or wood1 or water1 or provisions3 and now ,i will tell you another thing which shows a great deal of sense4 ,as some of their houses are very high up1 you know they would find it very hard to climb up through all the streets with a heavy load in a straight line2 so when these large ways underground reach the outside wall1 they just come through and keep on winding around the inside of it like a corkscrew all the way to the top2 and there are other galleries opening from it at different places into the city4 ,one thing has been noticed about these ants2 they can scarcely climb at all up a perpendicular wall4 ,therefore on the upright side of any part of the city you may see a road made1 standing out from the wall like a ledge2 it is flat on the top1 and half an inch wide1 and goes up gradually like a stair-case1 or like a road cut out on the side of a mountain4 ,here is a picture of one of their cities cut straight down through the middle4 ,at the bottom1 in the centre1 is the queen's house2 over it is a floor1 and the two crooked things you see rising up from the floor1 are bridges4 ,illustration ,but1 ,uncle ,philip1 you said you would tell us about the soldiers and labourers coming out when the city is attacked4 ,yes1 ,i did4 ,as soon as a hole is made in the outside wall1 you will see a soldier run out1 and walk about as if to look around2 but as he is blind1 it cannot be to see what the danger is4 ,he may have some way though of finding out without seeing4 ,presently he will go in1 as if to tell the others1 and then out pour the soldiers in great numbers1 as fast as the hole will let them2 and just as long as you strike the outside wall1 they will continue to rush out4 ,they seem to be in a terrible passion4 ,they are in such a hurry that sometimes they slip1 and roll down the outside of the hill2 but they jump up again instantly1 and begin to bite every thing they run against1 for they are blind and cannot tell a friend from an enemy4 ,do they bite hard1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,very hard indeed4 ,they make their hooked jaws1 which are like awls1 you know1 meet at every bite2 and if it should happen to be a man's leg they get hold of1 you would see upon his stocking a spot of blood an inch long4 ,at every bite too you may hear their jaws snapping together and making quite a noise4 ,some of them too 7perhaps they are the officers7 are constantly beating with their awls upon the outside wall1 and make a sound something quicker and sharper than the ticking of a watch4 ,you may hear it at a distance of three or four feet4 ,when these biters lay hold1 nothing will make them let go2 you must tear them away by pieces4 ,after you stop striking the wall1 in about half an hour they seem to get over their rage and go back into the city1 and then out come the labourers4 ,while the noise continues you will not see one of them2 they all fled at the first appearance of danger4 ,but now they come1 each one with a bundle of mortar in his mouth1 ready made2 and they stick it on the hole so fast1 and with such order1 that though thousands and thousands are at work they never interrupt each other4 ,and while the labourers are busy1 if you look you may commonly see a soldier or two walking about2 but they never touch the mortar1 nor help in any way to mend the hole4 ,one of these soldiers always stands near the spot where the labourers are at work1 and every now and then turns slowly around1 and frequently lifts up his head1 and with his awls beats upon the building1 and makes a sort of hissing noise4 ,as soon as that is done you may hear a loud hiss from all the labourers1 both on the outside of the wall and from the inside of the city1 and then the labourers run faster1 and work as quick again4 ,if you attack the nest again1 away run all the labourers as fast as their legs will carry them1 and out pour the soldiers as before2 and the same thing is always seen upon every attack1 of soldiers to fight and labourers to work4 ,well1 ,uncle ,philip1 this is a very strange story2 much more interesting than any we have yet heard4 ,i thought it would please you1 boys2 but there are still stranger things among animals1 and perhaps you will say so when you know more4 ,but it is now time to return home2 so take in the kite and let us be going4 ,,footnote3 #aj ,mr4 ,huber the younger4 ,,conversation ,,xi4 ,uncle ,philip tells the ,children about some other ,ants1 that are very good ,masons1 and build ,walls and ,ceilings2 and a ,story about a very sensible ,ant1 which seemed to think a little4 ,good morning1 good morning1 ,uncle ,philip2 we have been so much delighted with the stories about the white ants1 that we hope you have more of the same kind to tell us4 ,why1 as to that matter1 boys1 ,i can tell you much more about ants1 for there are many kinds of them2 but ,i am not sure that ,i can show you any of the tools with which they work1 though a large portion of their work is like that of man2 and they have1 too1 several customs which our fellow-creatures have4 ,i can tell you1 however1 of several other animals which do use tools shaped like those used by men1 if you would rather hear of them4 ,if you please1 ,uncle ,philip1 we will hear of them at another time2 but now we would rather have you tell us of the other kinds of ants4 ,oh1 very well1 boys2 it shall be as you wish4 ,all that ,i desire is to instruct and amuse you1 and ,i am sure that the ants can furnish a good lesson to us4 ,i shall begin with the mason ants4 ,they always build their nests either of clay which is damp1 and dug from the inside of their city under ground1 or which has been made wet by the rain2 and a part of their building is always above the ground1 so that you can easily see it4 ,there is no fixed rule for the ants to build by4 ,their cities are not all alike in the inside4 ,sometimes the walls are larger and coarser1 and the ways and galleries are higher1 than at other times4 ,the rooms1 too1 are different in shape and size1 so that this industrious little insect seems to have sense enough to work in the best way according to circumstances4 ,there is only one general rule which they seem to have1 and that is always to build in a number of different stories1 one above the other4 ,if you examine one of these stories you may see a number of large places or halls1 some smaller rooms1 and some long galleries which serve as passage-ways4 ,the tops of these large halls are covered with an arched ceiling1 and this ceiling is held up1 sometimes by little columns1 sometimes by very thin walls1 or by props built against the side walls1 just like buttresses4 ,there are also chambers which have but one door1 which opens into the lower story1 and large open places in the centre of the nest something like a cross road1 and all these little galleries or streets come into that open place4 ,any bridges1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,no1 boys2 no bridges among these ants1 so far as ,i know4 ,there will sometimes be as many as twenty stories above ground in the ant-hill1 and as many below4 ,the best time to see these little fellows at work is in a gentle shower of rain1 or directly after4 ,why do they work in the rain1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,i suppose1 boys1 it is because the earth is then better for them2 and one thing that has been noticed about their work is1 that the rain1 when it is not too violent1 seems to make it solid1 for these ants have no gum or glue about them like some other insects1 to make the earth stick together4 ,as soon as the rain begins1 if you watch the brown ants1 you may see them come out of the ground in great numbers2 and then running in again1 they will soon return1 each one with a little piece of dirt in his mouth1 which he puts down upon the roof of the nest4 ,a gentleman who watched them very closely#aj says1 that at first he could not think what this was done for1 but at last he saw little walls begin to rise up with spaces left between them4 ,in some places pillars were begun1 placed at regular distances1 and he knew that these were to support ceilings2 so he found out that they were going to build another story to their house1 and they were laying the foundations4 ,how ,i should have liked to see them4 ,uncle ,philip4 ,i would not have cared for the rain4 ,ah1 ,i see you are fit to be a naturalist4 ,you know what that word means1 do you not8 ,it means1 ,uncle ,philip1 a man who loves to study about the animals and insects1 does it not8 ,it means a man or a woman either1 boys1 who loves to study the things in nature no matter whether they are animals1 or stones1 or grass1 or flowers1 or any of the things which ,god has made4 ,mark1 boys1 ,i said to study the things1 and you said to study about the things4 ,now a person may read a great deal that is interesting and true about all these things in books2 and it is very well to do so2 but ,i think that the real naturalist will never be satisfied with books only2 he will be looking to see things for himself4 ,and ,i said a woman might be a naturalist1 because some ladies have been fond of natural history1 and have proved themselves to be very good naturalists4 ,but let us go back to the ants4 ,mr4 ,huber1 in the account which he gives of his having watched these little workmen1 never thought of telling us whether he got wet or not1 because he was too busy to think or care much about it4 ,he had an opportunity of seeing what he might never see again1 and a little rain was not to spoil it4 ,he says that each ant1 as it brought out its little lump of dirt1 would place it on the spot where it wished it to be1 and press against it with its teeth1 so as to make it fit closely4 ,it then rubbed its feelers all over it1 and after that pressed upon it lightly with its fore-feet4 ,the walls went on very rapidly1 and it often happened that two little walls1 which were to make a passage or gallery1 would be raised opposite and at a small distance from each other4 ,when they were about a quarter of an inch high1 the ants would set to work and cover them with an arched ceiling4 ,after they had raised all the walls as high as they wished1 on the inside of each wall at the top they began to put in pieces of wet dirt almost level1 and in such a way as to make a ledge2 and by joining on more dirt to it1 it would meet the ledge made from the opposite wall so as to make a roof3 these roofs over the galleries were about a quarter of an inch across4 ,the ceilings over the large halls were sometimes as much as two inches in breadth1 and to support these they raised pillars2 and beginning in the corner where two walls joined1 they would commence the ceiling with a ledge1 while from the top of each pillar they would also build out a layer of earth a little rounded on the top2 these they continued to add to until all met and made a complete cover for the hall4 ,i wonder it did not fall1 ,uncle ,philip1 before they could join it together4 ,mr4 ,huber says that he thought several times it would fall1 from the rain which was dropping upon it all the time2 but he found that the pieces held together1 and that the rain1 instead of hurting it1 only made it more solid4 ,all that it wants1 when the ants have done1 is a little heat from the sun to bake it hard1 and then it appears like a piece of solid dirt4 ,sometimes1 if the rain be violent1 the apartments will be destroyed1 especially if the arches are not built strongly2 and when this happens1 the little creatures go to work very patiently and rebuild them4 ,and how long1 ,uncle ,philip1 did it take the ants to put another story on their house8 ,between seven and eight hours2 and they had hardly finished one before they began another1 but they had not time to finish it1 for the rain stopped before they had built much3 however1 they kept on1 taking advantage of the wet earth2 but a cold drying wind soon sprang up1 and the earth would not stick2 so they stopped3 but what do you think they did with the new story which they had not time to finish8 ,what did they do1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,pulled every part of it to pieces1 and scattered the dirt here and there over the roof of the story which they had finished4 ,i will tell you another story about these ants1 boys1 which ,i think is most wonderful1 because it appears so much like reason4 ,these insects all seem to work separately1--,i mean without attending to the work of others3 of course sometimes the work done by different ants on opposite sides of the same gallery or hall will not suit3 one wall will be higher than the other1 so that the ceilings will not meet4 ,mr4 ,huber saw just such a case2 the ceiling which was begun from one wall would just have reached the other wall about half-way up2 and while he was wondering how the ants would cure the fault1 one of them came1 and looking at the work1 seemed to know that it was wrong1 and immediately began by taking down the ceiling from the lower wall2 he then raised it to the same height with the opposite wall1 and made a new ceiling in ,mr4 ,huber's presence with the pieces of the old one4 ,uncle ,philip1 if that ant did not know how to think1 ,i am mistaken4 ,i must confess1 boys1 it does seem very much like thinking2 and if it was not thinking1 we must at any rate own that it was something which1 in this case1 did quite as well2 for no thought of man could have hit upon a better plan4 ,but if the ant knew how to think as a man does1 do you suppose it would ever have made the mistake8 ,would not the workmen have all agreed beforehand what they were to do1 and how it should be done1 so that there might be no need of pulling down any of the work because it would not suit8 ,i think that this story1 boys1 while it shows us something like reason in one particular instance1 shows us also that in general the ant has not reason like ours4 ,but ,i am tired now1 and can tell you no more this morning4 ,when you come again ,i shall be ready to talk with you about some other kinds of ants4 ,but before you go1 tell me--can any of you inform me what the ,bible says about the ant8 ,oh yes1 ,uncle ,philip3 it says1 ',go to the ant1 thou sluggard1 consider her ways1 and be wise4' ,well1 another question4 ,have you any lessons to say when you go into school on ,monday8 ,yes1 ,uncle ,philip2 we have4 ,have you learned them1 boys8 ,no1 sir4 ,then remember what the ,bible says to the sluggard1 and go and learn them at once4 ,good-by1 children4 ,good-by1 ,uncle ,philip3 we will learn our lessons4 ,,conversation ,,xii4 ,uncle ,philip tells the ,boys about ,ants that go to ,war and fight ,battles2 and about some that are ,thieves1 and have ,slaves4 ,well1 my lads1 how do you do to-day8 ,very well1 ,uncle ,philip1 we thank you4 ,and we wish to let you know that we kept our promise to learn our lessons4 ,our teacher was very well satisfied with every one of us4 ,that is well1 boys4 ,i am truly glad to hear this from you3 and ,i make no doubt that you also felt a great deal happier than you would have done had you neglected to learn your lessons4 ,did you not8 ,oh yes1 ,uncle ,philip1 much happier2 and far more cheerful and good-natured4 ,such are apt to be the feelings1 boys1 of those who have done their duty4 ,i am verily persuaded that there is no such thing as real1 solid happiness in this world1 but in that man who acts from a sense of duty4 ,his is true peace1 because it is 'the peace of ,god4' ,i do not say1 boys1 that a man1 even when he does his duty1 always feels comfortable or happy at once2 but he will be more apt to feel so than if he did not do his duty3 and ,i do say that no man who does not act from a sense of duty1 is likely to feel any thing like happiness very often or very long4 ,then1 ,uncle ,philip1 a man who wishes to be happy will try in the first place to find out what his duty is4 ,to be sure1 he will2 and he need not try very long either1 if he really wishes to know it4 ,the will of ,god1 boys1 is at the bottom of all our duties2 and an honest man1 yes1 or boy either1 can commonly tell what ,god will think to be right or wrong in his conduct4 ,you know where a great many of our duties are very plainly written down for us2 do you not8 ,oh yes1 sir2 in the ,new ,testament1 which tells us of what our ,saviour said and did4 ,true4 ,and what our ,saviour commanded1 boys1 ,god commanded2 for ,he is ,god4 ,but besides this1 when it is not exactly written down in the ,new ,testament what we should do1 still if we will think1 we shall very often find out what to do1 from what is written4 ,uncle ,philip1 we almost always know what you mean2 but now1 we do not quite understand you4 ,thank you1 boys1 for telling me that you do not know what ,i mean3 always tell any person who is trying to teach you something1 when you do not understand what is said to you4 ,now ,i will try to make what ,i said plainer to you4 ,the ,new ,testament does not say any thing about your going to school2 does it8 ,no1 sir4 ,who sends you to school1 boys1 and pays your teachers for instructing you8 ,our parents1 ,uncle ,philip4 ,very well4 ,now suppose that ,john ,carter here1 should wish1 instead of going to school1 to do1 what ,i am very sure he never did do3 suppose he should determine to play the truant4 ,the ,bible does not say a boy shall not play the truant1 does it8 ,no1 ,uncle ,philip4 ,but if ,john ,carter should play the truant1 he would1 in doing so1 disobey what ,god has commanded in the ,bible just as much as if the ,bible did say ',a boy shall not play the truant2' for the ,bible does say1 ',children obey your parents1' and he could not be a truant without disobeying his parents1 who bade him go to school4 ,uncle ,philip1 we understand you very well now4 ,there is another thing ,i wish you to understand1 boys4 ,john ,carter1 as you see1 would not only disobey his parents1 which is wicked1 but he would also commit a sin against ,god4 ,that is always the thing to look at first4 ,when we are going to do something that we are not very sure is right1 we should always stop to ask ourselves whether ,god will be pleased with it4 ,but ,i have said enough to you about our duty for this time4 ,now for the ants ,i promised to tell you of4 ,and the first sort ,i shall mention are great fighters4 ,fighters1 ,uncle ,philip6 ,what do they fight about8 ,about trifles1 boys1 just as men do4 ,they have terrible wars1 and will dispute with and kill each other for a few inches of dirt1 when certainly this world is large enough for them all4 ,but animals wiser than ants1 boys1 act in the same foolish way4 ,men sometimes go to war and kill each other to determine who shall have a river1 or a small town1 or a fort1 or some little spot of ground2 while the poor creatures who do the fighting1 and get all the wounds1 and lose their lives1 had they been let alone1 would have lived on in peace1 and never cared a straw who had the miserable little spot they fight for4 ,but let me go on with the account of these ants4 ,in the forests1 where the fallow ants live1 you may see these wars4 ,the battle will be between the ants of different hills1 but they are all ants of the same sort4 ,thousands and thousands of them will meet on the ground between their hills1 and the battle begins by two ants1 who seize each other by the claws 7or mandibles1 as they are called71 and rising up on their hind-legs1 they bring their bodies near together1 and spirt a sort of venomous or poisonous juice upon each other4 ,these will be followed by thousands of others on both sides1 who seize each other in the same way1 and fight in pairs--ant to ant4 ,sometimes they will get so wedged together that they fall down upon their sides1 but they do not let go on that account2 they keep on fighting in the dust until they rise on their feet again4 ,sometimes1 too1 a third ant will come in1 and joining whichever of them belongs to his nest1 the two will begin to drag the third1 until some of his friends come to his help2 and in this way1 others joining on both sides1 they will form strings of six1 or eight1 or ten on a side1 pulling with all their strength4 ,and while some are fighting1 you will see others leading off prisoners towards their hills1 while the prisoners are trying to escape4 ,the field of battle is not more1 perhaps1 than three feet square2 multitudes of dead ants covered with venom may be seen upon it1 and there is a very strong scent which comes from it4 ,when night comes they go off to their hills4 ,before dawn the next day they are at it again in still larger numbers1 and they fight with greater fury than before1 until at last one side or the other gives way4 ,they are so busy that even if you stand near them they take no notice of you1 and not one stops fighting1 or crawls up your legs4 ,do all of them that belong to the hill go out to fight1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,no2 near the hills all is peace and order1 and work seems to be going on as usual4 ,only on the side next to the battle1 crowds may be seen running backwards and forwards from both hills2 some as messengers1 ,i suppose1 and some to fight1 or carry back prisoners4 ,but1 ,uncle ,philip1 you said that these ants were all of one sort2 how then do they know one another so as to tell which party each one belongs to8 ,i should think that sometimes they would make a mistake1 and fight a friend instead of an enemy4 ,this1 boys1 is one of the most wonderful things concerning them4 ,they are alike in form1 and size1 and weapons1 and strength2 and sometimes it happens that they do make a mistake1 but it is very seldom2 and when they do1 ,mr4 ,huber1 who watched one of their battles1 says that they find it out directly1 and caress each other with their feelers1 and make up the difficulty at once4 ,are you tired1 boys1 or do you wish to hear more8 ,oh1 let us hear more1 by all means3 we are not at all tired4 ,i will then tell you of another kind of ants called legionary ants1 and sometimes amazons2 but ,i am sorry to say that they are unlike other ants1 for they are lazy2 and yet they live very comfortably4 ,how is that1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,can they be comfortable without working8 ,yes1 boys1 if they can get others to work for them2 and these have their work mostly done by their slaves4 ,by their slaves6 what are their slaves1 and where did they get them8 ,as to your first question1 boys1 their slaves are ants of another kind2 as to the second question--where they get them--they stole them when they were young4 ,why you surprise us1 ,uncle ,philip4 ,i dare say ,i do4 ,there are persons much older than you are who have never attended at all to the doings of insects1 who would be very much astonished by the history of the legionary ants2 and probably would laugh at the whole account as an idle story2 and yet it is all true1 and those who have read and seen1 know it to be true2 and they know1 too1 that to deny it shows nothing but ignorance4 ,however1 ,i always let such persons alone4 ,i can do them no good2 for they are apt to be very conceited1 and will not be convinced4 ,and now for the legionary ant4 ,this is a fighting ant1 as well as the last ,i mentioned2 and it actually steals the young of another kind1 rears them1 and puts all the work on them1 so as to be idle itself4 ,this curious fact was first found out by ,mr4 ,huber2 another gentleman1 named ,latreille1 afterward saw the same thing2 and now a great many naturalists know it1 because they have sought for and seen it4 ,the ant which it steals is of a dark ash colour2 the legionary is of light colour4 ,the dark-coloured ant is now called the negro ant1 and is a very industrious1 peaceable insect1 without any sting4 ,the legionary is a strong1 brave ant1 with a sting1 but very lazy4 ,i shall relate to you the account which ,mr4 ,huber gives of the legionary4 ,he was walking near the city of ,geneva during an afternoon in the summer of #ahjd1 when he saw quite an army of these legionary ants crossing the road2 they passed through a thick hedge1 entered a pasture1 and kept on through the grass without separating2 and ,mr4 ,huber followed them until he saw them come near a nest of negro ants4 ,some of these negro ants seemed to be guarding the holes into their nest2 but as soon as they saw the legionaries1 they1 with a great many more from the inside of the nest1 attacked the thieves4 ,the legionary ants1 however1 were too powerful for them1 and after a short but severe fight they conquered the negroes1 who ran into the lower part of their nests4 ,the legionaries then mounted their ant-hill1 some entered it by the holes already made1 and others began with their teeth to break other holes1 so that all the army might get into the hill4 ,they went in and remained but a few minutes1 when they came out1 each one having in his mouth a young negro ant1 and off they scampered1 without any order among them1 every one going his own way1 until ,mr4 ,huber lost sight of them4 ,the next day he set out to go back and examine further1 and on his way he found a large ant-hill full of legionaries1 and saw an army start from it1 which he followed4 ,they made the attack as before1 and each one came off with a young negro ant in his mouth1 and on going back to their hill1 from which ,mr4 ,huber saw them start1 he had an opportunity of seeing them return1 and was very much surprised to find all around the nest of the legionaries a great many full-grown negro ants4 ,at first he thought that perhaps they had gone there to fight the legionaries1 but he soon saw that instead of fighting1 the negro ants went out to meet the legionaries returning1 and would caress them1 and give them food1 and finally take the young negro ants and carry them within the nest4 ,but1 ,uncle ,philip1 why do the legionaries always take the young ones8 ,because1 boys1 they know1 ,i suppose1 that the old ants would never be satisfied to remove from their homes2 and therefore they take the young4 ,these legionaries could work if they would1 ,i think1 but they depend upon the negro ants for house and home1 and food too2 and nothing can be more faithful and affectionate than these poor slaves are4 ,to try them1 ,mr4 ,huber took thirty of the legionaries1 and put them with some of the larv1 or grubs of their own young1 into a glass box with a thick coat of earth at the bottom of it1 and he put honey also in the box1 that they might not want food4 ,at first the legionaries paid a little attention to their young2 but they soon stopped2 and they neither tried to make a house1 nor took any food1 so that in two days half of them died4 ,mr4 ,huber then put in one negro ant1 and this little creature set to work alone1 made a chamber of the earth in the box1 gathered the young together1 fed the old1 and put every thing into complete order4 ,at another time ,mr4 ,huber broke one of the ant-hills of these legionaries1 to see how they would act1 and in doing it1 he1 of course1 altered their galleries and chambers4 ,the legionaries seemed to be lost1 and went wandering about1 without knowing where to go2 but the negro ants appeared to understand very well where they were3 they could find such of the galleries as were not broken1 and would take up the legionaries in their mouths and carry them into them4 ,if the negro sometimes seemed for a short time to be lost1 and not to know where it was1 it laid down its master1 ran round and examined until it knew1 and then would come back1 and pick up the legionary ant1 and carry it off4 ,in one case ,mr4 ,huber saw that the entrance to a gallery was stopped up by a small lump of earth2 the negro ant laid his master down1 took away the piece of earth1 and then carried him in4 ,why1 these poor negro ants are sensible as well as faithful1 ,uncle ,philip4 ,yes1 boys1 they are so2 and ,i think it is likely that both kinds depend in some way upon each other1 but we have not yet found all about it4 ,i expect that in some things the legionary does for the negro ant what it could not do for itself4 ,god has made them necessary to each other1 and this is the reason they live together so kindly4 ,but ,i think it is time now to leave the ants1 and go back to our business of seeking for something like man's inventions and tools among the lower animals4 ,perhaps hereafter ,i may tell you more about ants2 but at present ,i must bid you good morning4 ,good morning1 ,uncle ,philip4 ,,conversation ,,xiii4 ,uncle ,philip and the ,boys make a ,voyage1 and he tells them of an ,animal that makes itself into a ,ship2 and of an ,insect that builds a ,boat1 and floats about in a ,canoe2 and of another that pumps ,water1 and wears a ,mask2 and of a ,spider that builds a ,raft1 and floats upon it4 ,well1 boys1 ,i have a most delightful plan for us to-day4 ,what is it1 what is it1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,why1 ,i have a little voyage to make1 and my boat is on the river just above the mill4 ,i have the men there to row it1 and every thing is ready4 ,oh6 dear ,uncle ,philip1 this is charming6 we shall be so happy6 ,but--but-- ,but what1 boys8 ,why1 ,uncle ,philip1 we have not asked leave at home4 ,now our parents are very happy to have us visit you1 and say that they are very much obliged to you for telling us so many things2 but they have told us1 too1 never to get into a boat without asking their permission first4 ,uncle ,philip1 we are sure they will let us go1 if they know that you are going2 only let us run home and ask them4 ,my dear boys1 ,i am very much pleased with your conduct2 and1 what is far better1 my children1 ,god is pleased2 for he has commanded you to honour your father and mother3 but you need not go home to ask permission1 for you may depend upon it ,i would not take one of you upon the water without the consent of your parents3 so ,i went yesterday1 while you were all at school1 and have got permission from your friends for every one of you to go--only ,i asked them to tell you nothing about it4 ,oh dear1 ,uncle ,philip1 you are so very1 very good3 thank you1 thank you1 a thousand times over4 ,once is enough1 boys4 ,there is but one ,being who deserves a thousand thanks1 and he1 in truth1 deserves a great many more than a thousand2 but ,i fear that from a great many he is just the ,being who gets the fewest1--it is our ,heavenly ,father3 but come on1 boys1 let us be going to the boat4 ,we shall soon reach her4 ,ah1 yonder she is2 ,i see her through the trees4 ,oh1 what a beauty she is1 ,uncle ,philip1 with her green sides and white belt near the top4 ,we shall have a charming voyage4 ,come1 then2 get in1 my little sailors1 and seat yourselves yonder in the stern4 ,now we are all ready2 shove off1 men1 and use your oars4 ,i will take care of the helm4 ,oh1 ,uncle ,philip1 how smoothly we go along6 this is charming4 ,is this the way a ship goes1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,a ship floats1 boys1 just as the boat does2 but she is not rowed with oars2 she has sails1 and the wind blowing upon them sends her along4 ,uncle ,philip1 there are no ships among animals1 are there8 ,oh no2 but there is a very curious little animal which lives in the water1 and manages to rig out something like a ship1 and to sail4 ,what is it1 ,uncle ,philip8 pray let us hear of it4 ,it is called the nautilus1 and ,i saw a great many of them in the ,mediterranean sea4 ,the shell is nearly round1 and six or eight inches across1 not much thicker than paper1 and of a whitish colour3 it has1 too1 a keel or ridge upon each side4 ,when it wishes to sail1 it stretches upwards two of its legs3 these have a very thin skin at the end1 which the nautilus spreads out for sails1 and the other legs hang over on each side of the shell for oars or rudders4 ,when the sea is calm1 a great many of them may be seen playing about2 but as soon as a storm arises1 or they are disturbed1 they take in their sails and sink to the bottom4 ,but1 boys1 the most curious boat that ,i know1 made by one of the dumb creatures1 is the work of the little insect that played the doctor the other day1 and stuck his lancet into us4 ,do you remember what insect that was8 ,oh yes1 very well1 ,uncle ,philip1 it was the gnat4 ,true1 boys1 it was the gnat1 which is an insect that spends the first part of its life in the water1 and the latter part in the air4 ,the grub of the gnat lives in water1 and ,i will give you the whole history of this curious insect4 ,we will first speak of the eggs1 for out of these it is that the boat is made4 ,in order to see this boat made1 you must go early in the morning1 between five and six o'clock1 to a bucket1 or pond of stagnant water1 where gnats are to be found3 if you go later you will not see it4 ,the gnat's eggs are shaped something like a pocket powder-flask1 and it is by putting a great many of these together that she makes the boat4 ,to do this1 the mother gnat stands by her fore-legs upon the side of the bucket1 or on a leaf or stick in the pond1 and her body is on a level with the water1 and rests upon it1 except the last ring of her tail1 which she raises a little4 ,she then crosses her two hind-legs in the shape of the letter ,x1 and begins to put her eggs in that part of the ,x nearest to her body4 ,so she brings her legs1 crossed in this way1 near to her body1 and puts an egg in the angle1 covered with a kind of glue1 which will make the eggs stick together4 ,on each side of the first egg she puts another in this shape 49941 and here is a drawing of the insect at this part of her work4 ,illustration3 ,a ,gnat making her ,boat of ,eggs4 ,she then goes on adding eggs1 which are all put in the water with their ends downwards1 until she has got her boat half-finished2 she then uncrosses her legs1 and just keeps one on each side of the boat as she goes on1 until she has completed it4 ,and how many eggs1 ,uncle ,philip1 will she put together in this way8 ,from two hundred and fifty to three hundred and fifty1 and when all are laid they make quite a good boat1 sharp1 and raised at both ends1 and floating on the water4 ,then the mother gnat leaves it4 ,here is a picture of one of these boats4 ,illustration ,now ,i will tell you of what becomes of the young ones in these eggs4 ,they come out of the lower part of the egg1 and commonly swim1 with their heads downward1 near to the top of the water4 ,with their heads downward1 ,uncle ,philip6 what is that for8 ,why1 they have a tube at the end of their bodies1 near the tail1 through which they breathe2 and that part must1 you know1 be at the top to get air4 ,besides this1 its tail and its breathing tube both end in a sort of funnel1 made up of hairs placed somewhat in the form of a star1 and covered with oil1 so as to keep off water1 and these buoy or float it up4 ,when it wishes to sink1 it just folds up its funnels1 and shuts up in them a little bubble of air1 which it breathes under the water2 and when it wishes to rise1 it opens its funnels1 and they float it to the top again4 ,here is a drawing which will show it to you4 ,illustration3 ,larva of the common ,gnat floating in water1 greatly magnified4 aa1 the body and head of the larva2 b1 the respiratory apparatus1 situated in the tail2 c1 the larva1 not magnified4 ,they are hatched in a few days1 and then the boat of empty eggs floats about until it is destroyed by the weather4 ,and to show you how good a boat it is1 ,i will tell you what a gentleman did to prove it4 ,mr4 ,kirby1 who is very fond of natural history1 and has written a great deal about insects1 says that he put half a dozen of these gnat-boats in a tumbler half full of water1 and then poured upon them a stream from the mouth of a quart bottle1 held up a foot above them1 and he could not sink them4 ,more than that1 the water would not stay in them4 ,if you push one to the bottom with your finger1 it will come up to the top directly1 and you cannot see any water in it4 ,why1 this is a noble boat1 ,uncle ,philip1 that will never sink4 ,true1 boys2 but listen1 and you will find that before it can use its wings the gnat has to sail in another boat still1 much more dangerous than this is4 ,after it is hatched1 it has to pass through several shapes before it gets to be such an insect as you see4 ,here is a picture which will show you its different shapes4 ,illustration ,the first is the same which you saw in the last picture1 only in this drawing the head is uppermost4 ,but its last change1 when it becomes an insect with wings1 is the most curious part of the whole4 ,when it is about to get its wings1 and become a perfect gnat1 it raises its shoulders just above the top of the water1 and its skin cracks1 so that the head of the gnat immediately comes through4 ,the shoulders come next1 and make the crack larger2 but it has yet all its body to get out1 and its legs and wings are as yet all shut up in its case4 ,now is the time of danger for the gnat4 ,it raises itself nearly straight out of the crack1 and by wriggling works its body along3 and if a particle of water should get upon the case1 or touch its wings1 it would be overset1 and must perish4 ,thousands and thousands die in this way4 ,it is so very light1 too1 that the wind will drive it about1 and whirl it round and round upon the top of the water2 and when it is almost out1 the insect is tossed about in a canoe or boat of the very weakest sort1 while its body is a mast1 which appears much too large for so small a boat4 ,at last it gets far enough out of the case to stretch its fore-legs1 and put them down upon the water 7which will bear a gnat's weight71 and then it is safe2 it spreads its wings1 and soon leaves the little boat which was so dangerous4 ,here is a picture of the gnat getting out of its case4 ,illustration ,well1 ,uncle ,philip1 all this is very strange2 we never knew before that the gnat was a sailor4 ,i suppose that you did not1 boys4 ,but as we are talking of boats1 pray can you think of any way of making a boat move through water without oars1 or paddles1 or sails1 or something to pull it along8 ,no indeed4--,oh yes1 ,uncle ,philip1 by steam4 ,ah1 ,i mentioned paddles1 boys1 and a steamboat is forced along by them4 ,no2 ,uncle ,philip1 we do not know4 ,well1 ,i will tell you then of another way in which ,i have no doubt a boat might be made to move4 ,if there were any contrivance by which a large quantity of water could be kept in the boat1 and if this water were forced out of tubes or holes at one end very violently1 it would push against the water in which the boat was floating1 and force her along4 ,some years ago a plan was thought of to make a steam engine throw the water out of the stern of the boat1 and thus to force her along2 and before that1 ,dr4 ,franklin tried some schemes for the same purpose1 but they never succeeded4 ,now there is an insect which adopts precisely this plan1 and perhaps some of those who thought of it got the notion from the insect4 ,what insect is it1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,it is the grub of the dragon-fly4 ,if you catch one of these grubs and put it into a saucer of water with some of the dead leaves or sticks it had for a covering1 you will see these leaves or sticks floating towards the tail of the grub1 and afterward driven off again4 ,this is because the insect is pumping in water1 and then throwing it out4 ,if you take one of them out of the water1 and hold it with its head down1 and let a drop of water fall upon its tail1 it instantly sucks it in1 and you can see it grow larger2 and when it throws it out again it becomes smaller4 ,but1 ,uncle ,philip1 how can you see it suck the water in8 ,very easily1 boys4 ,when it is in the water1 if you will colour some other water with indigo1 or ink1 or any thing else1 and then hold a glass tube just over the tail of the insect1 and very carefully put some of the coloured water into the tube1 you will soon see the grub spirt out a stream of it to the distance of several inches3 or if you will put the insect in a saucer of coloured water1 and then suddenly move it1 and put it into one of clean water1 you will see it spirt out the coloured stream plainer still4 ,why1 ,uncle ,philip1 it must have a pump inside of it4 ,it has1 boys1 something very like one4 ,this stream of water is forced out to help the insect along2 for though it has six feet1 it uses them very little except for catching food4 ,it drives the water out so strongly against the still water behind it1 that it sends it forward1 with a dart1 very rapidly4 ,here are two pictures2 one shows the pump open1 and the other shows it shut4 ,illustration ,uncle ,philip1 is there any thing else curious about this insect8 ,there is1 boys1 something well worth attention2 did you ever see a mask8 ,do you mean1 ,uncle ,philip1 a face made of pasteboard1 very frightful commonly1 which you can wear over your own face8 ,that is a mask1 boys2 but so is any thing which is made to wear over the face1 and hide it4 ,now this little insect has a mask1 not made like a man's face1 but which completely hides its mouth1 and it is exceedingly curious4 ,how is it made1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,why1 boys1 ,i am not sure that ,i can tell you1 so that you will understand me2 but ,i will try4 ,suppose your under-lip was horn1 instead of being flesh2 and suppose it hung straight down until it reached the bottom of your chin1 so as to cover the whole of it1 and that at the bottom there was a large three-sided plate which was hollowed out1 and fastened by a joint or hinge to the bottom of your long lip1 so that it could turn up on the hinge and cover your face as high up as your nose1 and hide your long lip and your mouth and part of your cheeks3 suppose1 too1 that at the upper end of this long face-cover there were two other pieces1 so broad that they would cover all your nose and your temples1 and could open sidewise like jaws1 and show your nose and mouth1 so that when they were opened they would appear like the blinders to a horse's bridle2 and then suppose that these jaws1 upon their inner edges1 were cut into a great many sharp teeth1 which fitted into each other1 and you will have some notion of this curious mask4 ,do you think you understand me8 ,why1 pretty well1 ,uncle ,philip1 we think4 ,well1 boys1 here are some pictures1 and with their help ,i hope what ,i have been saying will be plain enough4 ,in one picture the mask is shut2 and in the other1 one of the jaws1 like a blinder to a bridle1 is open4 ,while the insect is at rest1 it keeps the mask over its face2 when it wishes to use it1 it unfolds it1 and catches its food1 and holds it to its mouth4 ,a gentleman once saw one of them holding and eating a large tadpole4 ,illustration3 ,mask of the ,dragon-fly1 shut and open4 ,uncle ,philip1 this mask is any thing but handsome4 ,very true2 but you know we agreed when we were talking about the bats to look at animals even if they were not handsome4 ,and there is your poor little ugly insect that you thought it right to kill1 the spider2 did you know that the spider was a sailor1 too8 ,no1 indeed1 ,uncle ,philip6 ,pray tell us of it1 will you8 ,yes2 but wait a little1 until we bring the boat's head right1 for we are near the landing-place4 ,so--now1 boys1 ,i am ready4 ,there is a very large spider1 about which not much is yet known1 which actually builds a raft1 for the purpose of getting its food more easily4 ,you may see it sailing about upon the water1 on a ball of weeds about three inches across1 which is held together probably by small silk cords spun from itself2 and the moment it sees an insect drowning1 it leaves the raft1 gets the insect1 and then returns to eat it at leisure4 ,if you frighten it1 or it thinks danger is near1 in an instant it is under the raft out of sight4 ,ah1 this is a cunning spider1 ,uncle ,philip4 ,not half so cunning1 boys1 as the one we talked of which built a door to its house4 ,but here we are at land4 ,jump ashore1 my lads1 and give my respects to your fathers and mothers1 when you get home4 ,we will4 ,good day1 ,uncle ,philip4 ,good day1 boys4 ,i shall be glad to see you next ,saturday4 ,,conversation ,,xiv4 ,uncle ,philip tells the ,boys about an ,insect with ,tweezers1 and another with ,pincers2 and shows them how a ,fly's ,foot is made1 so as to stick to the ,wall4 ,how do you do1 ,uncle ,philip1 this morning8 ,very well1 boys1 ,i thank you4 ,you are all well1 ,i suppose1 or ,i should not see you here4 ,yes1 we are all well1 thank you1 ,uncle ,philip4 ,but one of us would be very glad to have your help4 ,why1 what is the matter8 ,charles ,walker has run a splinter into his hand1 and he wishes you to get it out for him4 ,oh1 certainly1 ,i will do that1 if ,i can4 ,let me see3 but stay--,i must first put on my spectacles4 ,ah1 now ,i see it2 ,i can get it out1 but ,i must take my tweezers to it4 ,there1 it is out4 ,uncle ,philip1 those tweezers are very useful4 ,if you had not had them1 you could not have taken hold of the splinter with your fingers2 and what would you have done then8 ,tried to cut it out with the point of my penknife2 but the tweezers are better for such work2 and that reminds me1 boys1 to tell you that there are insects with tweezers4 ,why1 what tool is it that you cannot find among them1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,it really seems as if you found almost every kind among the lower animals4 ,oh1 no--no1 boys4 ,there are a great many which ,i cannot find2 but there are several1 too1 which1 as you know1 we have discovered4 ,and1 ,uncle ,philip1 we suppose that men learned to make their tools and work at many of their trades from these dumb creatures4 ,stay1 boys--,i never said that1 because ,i think that it is not true4 ,we know that in some things men did not learn from the insects1 though they might have done so4 ,there is paper1 for instance4 ,how could men learn to make it from the wasps1 when it was a thins3 in common use a long time before ,mr4 ,reaumur1 of whom ,i told you1 found out how the wasp made it8 ,so1 too1 with a great many tools2 men invented them1 and afterward1 perhaps1 it was found out that insects had instruments like them3 and at other times the insects did show men how to make some things4 ,i will tell you of one which ,i think of just now4 ,the city of ,london1 in ,england1 is on the river ,thames4 ,some time since a plan was adopted to make what is called a tunnel under the river4 ,this tunnel is a road dug out of the earth1 under the bottom of the river1 across it2 and of course to keep the water from pressing in the earth as fast as it was hollowed out1 it was propped up by walls built on each side1 with a very strong arch at the top4 ,the work has now stopped2 but about half of it was made4 ,in building this arched road under the water1 the workmen used what they called a shield1 to keep the water from coming through upon them3 and the gentleman who invented it1 says that he first thought of it1 from examining a little animal named ,taret1 which will bore holes in large pieces of timber under the water4 ,this little animal has upon its head a kind of shield1 by which it keeps off the force of the water1 and works without being disturbed4 ,so here was a case in which the insect taught the man4 ,uncle ,philip1 that gentleman was a sensible man1 in the first place to watch the ,taret and examine its head1 and in the next place not to be too proud to learn from it4 ,i expect he was a naturalist2 was he1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,i do not know1 boys2 but ,i should think his discovery of the shield would make him an attentive observer1 if he was not so before4 ,now1 ,uncle ,philip1 will you tell us of the tweezers8 ,very willingly1 boys4 ,this instrument or tool belongs to the moths which you see flying about at times4 ,the tails are covered with a down1 which grows in the form of a thick brush or tuft1 and has a shining silky gloss1 different in colour from the short hair upon the rest of the body4 ,the moth pulls off this hair to cover its eggs1 and the tweezers are used for that purpose4 ,here is a picture of the moths4 ,illustration3 ,females of the brown and gold-tailed ,moths1 showing the bunch of down on the tails4 ,uncle ,philip1 you said that the moth pulled this hair off to cover its eggs2 are they easily frozen8 ,not very easily1 boys2 but you are mistaken in thinking that the moth covers these eggs to keep off the cold2 for as she lays them in ,july and ,august1 and covers them at that time1 it cannot be to keep off the cold4 ,what is it for1 then1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,to keep off the summer heat1 boys4 ,why1 ,uncle ,philip6 who ever heard of covering a thing up in hair or wool to keep off heat8 ,i have heard of it1 and seen it too1 boys4 ,it may seem strange1 but it is true1 that down and wool1 and such things1 are nearly as good to protect an animal from very great outward heat as they are to keep off very severe cold4 ,when ,i was at ,naples1 in ,italy1 it was summer2--the climate is a very warm one4--,the country people were in the habit of bringing snow into the city from ,mount ,vesuvius1 and every morning ,i could see them coming in with their snow1 which they sell to the rich to use for cooling things3 and they kept it from melting with straw and wool4 ,and in our own country1 especially at the south1 it is very common when a large lump of ice is brought to the house to be used through the day in midsummer1 to wrap it up in a thick blanket until it is wanted4 ,but ,i have not yet told you of the tweezers4 ,the moth has no jaws1 like bees and wasps1 so that it cannot pull off these hairs as the bee would2 but1 as ,i told you1 it performs the work with its tweezers1 which are placed in its tail1 and are like the points of a pair of sugar-tongs4 ,the insects1 too1 will use them very rapidly1 and pull off a little of the down1 spread the egg upon it1 and then cover it with more down1 and smooth it very neatly4 ,here are pictures of these tweezers4 ,illustration3 ,tweezers of the brown and gold-tailed ,moths1 magnified4 ,this is a curious instrument for the insect to have1 ,uncle ,philip4 ,true1 boys1 but a very useful one4 ,i will tell you1 however1 of another strange thing concerning moths with their tweezers2 ,i mean the way in which they will sometimes place their eggs4 ,the kind of moth that does this work is not exactly known1 but naturalists think that the eggs are moth's eggs1 because they are covered with the down1 exactly like those which are known to be moth's eggs4 ,these eggs are twisted round a branch1 like the thread of a screw1 or like the curled end of a corkscrew put over a small stick4 ,here is a picture of some of these eggs4 ,illustration3 ,spiral group of ,eggs of an unknown ,moth4 ,ah1 this is wonderful work indeed for a moth1 ,uncle ,philip4 ,as you seem to like this1 boys1 ,i will just mention to you that there is another moth1 called the lackey-moth1 which winds its eggs also around a branch4 ,they are hard1 however1 and not covered with any down1 and are put on in the strongest possible way4 ,if men wish to make an arch of stone1 you know that the stones will be more narrow at the bottom than at the top1 so that the bottom of the arch may make a small circle1 and the top a larger one3 thus-- ,illustration3 ,a1 ,key-stone of an arch2 ,b1 ,arch completed4 ,now the moth goes on this principle4 ,its eggs are shaped like the bowl of a wine-glass1 and the smaller end is put next to the branch4 ,they are all glued together1 too1 with a kind of gum1 which will not dissolve or melt in water2 so that the rain cannot injure them4 ,here is a picture of these eggs4 ,illustration3 ,eggs of the ,lackey-moth1 wound spirally round a twig of hawthorn2 natural size1 and magnified4 ,there is another insect1 boys1 which has something like tweezers2 though ,i think they resemble pincers most4 ,what is it1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,the boys call it father long-legs1 and ,i dare say you have often seen it4 ,it is the crane-fly1 and its pincers are used for putting its egg in the hole it has made for it4 ,where does it put its eggs1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,illustration3 ,ovipositor and ,eggs of the ,crane-fly4 ,in the earth1 boys2 and to enable the insect to do this1 the female has the pincers ,i spoke of3 they are made of something like horn1 and are sharp at the point4 ,with these she first bores a hole in the ground1 and then puts the egg in4 ,the egg is like a grain of gunpowder1 and she puts herself in a very curious posture to bore the hole4 ,here1 boys1 you may see a picture of the pincers as they appear through a microscope1 for they are not near as large as the picture4 ,and here is a drawing of one boring4 ,illustration3 ,crane-fly ovipositing1 and the larva beneath1 in the earth1 feeding upon grass roots4 ,what good pincers those are1 ,uncle ,philip3 but will you tell us one thing which we wish to know8 ,talking about the crane-fly has put me in mind of it3 the other day we were sitting together in school1 and the wall over our heads was covered with common flies2 and when we came out1 we were talking about the way in which the fly stuck to the wall without falling down2 and as we could not tell what kept him up1 we agreed to ask you about it4 ,i will tell you1 boys1 very willingly4 ,i do not wonder that you were unable to tell how the fly stuck to the wall2 for you never tried to find out1 and therefore could only guess at it4 ,and that is not a good way to find out any thing1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,no1 boys2 though some persons much older than you are1 did nothing but guess about this very thing1 and guessed very far from the truth too4 ,some thought that the fly had a sponge in its foot1 and squeezed a sort of glue out of it which made it stick fast2 others said that the glass or wall was so rough that the fly's feet would catch hold of the little points upon it2 but both were wrong4 ,how does it hold on1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,did you ever see what the boys call a sucker1 made of a piece of soft sole leather8 ,that will show you how the fly's foot sticks fast4 ,this leather is cut round1 and has a string through the centre2 the boys wet it1 and then put it upon a board or something smooth1 and stamp on it1 and try to raise it up from the board by the string2 and it requires some strength to pull it up3 sometimes they put it on a small smooth stone1 and then lift up the stone by it4 ,the reason why the leather sticks so fast is because the air is pressing on it upon the outside1 and there is very little or no air between it and the board1 to press the other way4 ,why1 ,uncle ,philip1 is the air heavy8 ,oh yes1 boys1 when there is so much of it as there is above the earth1 it presses down very heavily4 ,now the fly's foot is like the sucker2 when he puts it down he has a contrivance to drive out the air from under it1 so that there will be little or none between it and the wall2 and then the outer air presses upon it1 and holds it fast4 ,but1 ,uncle ,philip1 how does he get it up again8 ,why1 boys1 by another contrivance1 he can let air in under his foot again1 and then he can easily move it2 for we do not feel the weight of air when it presses upon both sides of us4 ,the reason why you stand up straight is because the air is pressing all around you2 if it were on one side of you only1 it would press you down on the other side4 ,here is a picture of the fly's foot1 as it appears through the microscope4 ,you will see it has three suckers with the edges all like saws2 these are to make it stick the closer4 ,this picture1 boys1 is sixty-four hundred times as large as the fly's foot is4 ,illustration3 ,fly's foot magnified4 ,but1 ,uncle ,philip1 there is one thing yet hard to understand4 ,what is it8 ,why1 the fly walks on the wall over our heads2 now the air cannot press down upon his feet there4 ,very true1 boys3 it cannot press down1 but it can and does press up against his feet2 for the air presses up and down and sidewise all alike4 ,ah1 now it is plain enough1 and we are much obliged to you1 ,uncle ,philip1 for telling us what we wished to know4 ,you are quite welcome1 my dear boys1 to all that ,i can teach you3 if it makes you to be wiser and better men when you grow up1 ,i shall be very thankful to ,god that ,i have been able to do you any good4 ,good morning1 ,uncle ,philip4 ,good day1 boys2 ,i shall expect to see you all in church to-morrow4 ,we shall be there1 ,uncle ,philip4 ,,conversation ,,xv4 ,uncle ,philip tells the ,boys how ,hats are made2 and then talks to them about ,animals that can make ,felt like the ,hatter4 ,boys1 do you remember my telling you of a remarkable bird1 called the tailor-bird1 which sews very neatly8 ,oh yes1 ,uncle ,philip2 it is not easy to forget such an excellent little workman2 but why do you ask--have you any thing more to tell us about that bird8 ,no1 boys1 not any thing of that bird2 but ,i was thinking last night of the work done by several other kinds of birds1 some of them quite as good workmen as our little tailor2 and ,i thought that1 perhaps1 you might like to hear of them4 ,we would1 ,uncle ,philip1 be very happy to hear of them1 if you will have the kindness to tell us about them4 ,but what kind of work is it they do8 ,various kinds1 boys4 ,there are some which make what is called felt1 just as the hat-maker does2 and some are weavers1 others basket-makers2 some build platforms to live on2 and ,i assure you some birds' nests are as curious as any of the things of which ,i have yet told you4 ,pray let us hear of them1 ,uncle ,philip4 ,very well1 you shall4 ,i will begin with birds that make felt like the hatter4 ,do you know how a hat is made8 ,not exactly1 ,uncle ,philip2 but we know what it is made of4 ,what is it1 boys8 ,of sheep's wool1 and the hair of other animals3 is it not8 ,yes1 commonly of these things2 and to understand what ,i am going to tell you1 ,i think it will be necessary first to say something about the hatter's trade4 ,the business of the man who makes a hat is to mix up wool or hair in such a way that it will stick together and make felt2 or something like a piece of thick1 strong cloth4 ,to do this1 he does not weave the hairs together1 for they are of different kinds1 and of different lengths1 and it would be endless work to weave every one in2 besides the cloth or felt would not be thick enough when it was done4 ,how do they stick together then1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,why1 boys1 their sticking together is owing to something in the hairs themselves4 ,i will show you4 ,pull a hair out of your head2 now hold it just between the ends of your two fore-fingers1 and rub the fingers gently against each other4 ,why1 ,uncle ,philip6 see1 the hair is moving towards my body4 ,very true2 and if you will turn it with the other end towards you1 and rub your fingers as before1 you will see it move from your body4 ,this is very strange1 ,uncle ,philip3 the hair is smooth2 how can my fingers make it move so8 ,no1 that is a mistake1 boys1 the hair is not smooth4 ,if some kinds of coarse hair are seen through the microscope1 each one will seem to be1 not one hair1 but ten or twelve smaller ones1 which are joined at the root1 and form a hollow tube1 like a straw2 and sometimes it will have joints just like some kinds of grass or straw4 ,in some sorts of finer hair you cannot see this even with the microscope2 but you can feel it1 as you did just now when you moved your fingers4 ,these joints overlap one another1 just as if you should take several pieces of straw and stick them into each other4 ,i will show you some pictures of hairs as seen through the microscope1 and then these joints will be plain enough4 ,illustration3 ,hairs of 7a7 the ,bat1 7b7 the ,mole1 and 7c7 the ,mouse4 ,these are strange-looking hairs1 ,uncle ,philip4 ,yes1 they are curious2 but now you may see why1 when hairs are worked together1 they may be made to stick to each other4 ,these rough parts catch into each other1 and hook themselves2 and the more you press them or move them1 the more closely you work them into one solid mass1 which you cannot easily pull to pieces4 ,besides1 you must remember that the hairs will work only one way1 as you found out just now when your finger ends caught upon the little joints and moved them along4 ,now1 suppose that a very large heap of hairs1 or wool1 or fur1 after it is made ready1 should be put upon a table1 and covered with a linen cloth1 and pressed down in different directions4 ,each hair would begin to move in the direction of its root1 just as it did between your fingers1 and so all would be joined together at last into one solid piece4 ,we understand you1 ,uncle ,philip4 ,then you understand1 boys1 the way in which a hat is made4 ,these hairs are all worked together by the hands of the hat-maker1 and to make them work more easily 7for curled hair1 such as wool1 does not move easily7 the hatter uses hot water1 and dips his hat in it while he is working it4 ,after it is done1 it is died1 and then put upon a wooden block to give it shape1 and is ironed smooth4 ,and this is the way1 then1 ,uncle ,philip1 to make hats3 it is curious1 is it not8 ,yes1 boys2 but plain enough when you come to examine into it4 ,and the best stuff for the hatters is such hair as has most joints ready to catch into each other3 the rabbit's hair is very good1 and for that reason4 ,and is it possible1 ,uncle ,philip1 that any bird can do such work as this8 ,not only possible1 boys1 but true4 ,there are several birds very expert at making felt1 and their nest appears like a piece of hatter's felt1 or double-milled woollen cloth4 ,i do not mean to say that it is as close and solid as the hat or cloth2 it would feel in your fingers looser than either1 still it is quite close2 and when you examine it1 you will find it put together in the same way2 it is all carded into one mass1 and not woven together thread by thread1 or hair by hair4 ,and are there many birds able to do such work1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,i told you1 boys1 that there were several4 ,the chief article which they use is wool1 but with this many other things will be found mixed--sometimes1 upon the outside1 fine moss--sometimes pieces of a spider's web rolled up into a little bundle--sometimes1 when cotton can be had1 they will use small bunches of cotton-wool2 but sheep's wool they must have1 and by means of that1 they contrive to make1 with the other things ,i have mentioned1 a felt wonderfully smooth4 ,is it smooth on the outside1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,sometimes quite so2 but always as smooth on the inside1 when it is first made1 as if it had been felted together by the hat-maker4 ,there is another thing curious enough in some of these nests4 ,the hatter1 you know1 binds the rim of his hat to make it stronger2 and some of these felt-making birds will make their nests stronger by a binding all around them of dry grass stems1 and sometimes of slender roots1 and they take care to cover these grass stems1 or roots1 with their felt-work of moss and wool4 ,but there is something else not less strange1 ,i think1 than the binding4 ,it is this3 they will build their nests in the fork of a shrub or tree2 and to keep them from falling1 they will work bands of this felt round all the branches which touch the nest1 both below and at the sides4 ,and those parts of the nest which touch the large branches are always thinner than the other parts1 which have no support2 in those parts the nest is nothing but a thin wall of felt1 fixed around to fit the shape of the branch1 and that is enough to make that part of the nest warm and soft4 ,here is a picture of one of these felt-nests1 fastened in the way of which ,i have been telling you4 ,illustration3 ,chaffinch's ,nest on an ,elder-tree4 ,this1 boys1 is the nest of the chaffinch4 ,the goldfinch makes a nest of the same kind1 only rather neater and smoother than that of the chaffinch2 for it takes pains to show nothing but the wool1 and covers up all the other materials which it uses4 ,uncle ,philip1 do these birds all use the same things to make their nests8 ,all use wool1 boys2 but the truth is1 that birds will commonly take for their nests that article which they can get most easily1 if it will suit4 ,a gentleman1 named ,bolton1 tried this with some goldfinches4 ,he saw a pair of these birds beginning to build in his garden2 they had laid the foundation of their nest with moss1 and grass1 and such things1 as they commonly use3 he scattered some wool about in different parts of the garden2 the birds took the wool3 afterward he scattered cotton2 they took the cotton3 on the next day he gave them some very fine down2 they took that1 and finished the nest with it1 and a very handsome nest it was4 ,how long were they in making it1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,three days4 ,the canary-bird1 boys1 which you sometimes see in cages1 when free1 builds a nest of the same kind4 ,but the most curious felt-makers among the birds1 are in ,africa4 ,there is the ,cape-tit1 a bird in the southern part of ,africa1 which builds a very strange nest3 it is shaped like a bottle of ,india-rubber1 as thick as a coarse worsted stocking1 and made of cotton1 and down1 and other things felted together4 ,on one side of the nest there is something like a pocket1 and here is a picture of it4 ,illustration3 ,nest of the ,cape-tit1 from ,sonnerat4 ,uncle ,philip1 what is that pocket for8 ,why1 boys1 some have supposed that it was for the male bird to sit on and keep watch1 while the female was inside of the nest sitting on the eggs2 but ,i think this is a mistake4 ,and some have said1 that when the female leaves the nest1 and the male wishes to go too1 he sits in this pocket1 and beats against the side of the nest with his wing until he has made the edges of the top meet1 and thus shuts up the mouth of the nest1 and keeps off insects and other animals that would eat the young ones2 but ,i do not believe this story4 ,then what do you think the pocket is for4 ,uncle ,philip8 ,i think1 boys1 that it is nothing but a perch1 or place for the bird to sit on before going into the nest4 ,if the bird had no such place for stopping1 it might be troubled to get into its nest4 ,the mouth is small1 and the bird could not enter it with its wings spread2 and if it should alight on the edge of the nest constantly1 it would injure it1 for it is but slightly made4 ,and ,i will tell you another reason why ,i think this is the use of the pocket4 ,there is another bird in ,south ,africa1 called the pinc-pinc1 which is the same species of bird as the ,cape-tit2 and this bird we know uses its little nest built upon the side of the other merely as a resting-place before going into the nest4 ,uncle ,philip1 does the pinc-pinc build its nest like a bottle1 as the ,cape-tit does8 ,no1 boys1 not so smooth1 but felted in the same way4 ,the nest is made mostly of the down of plants1 and is either snowy white or brownish1 according to the colour of the down4 ,on the outside it is a clumsy-looking thing1 but fastened1 like the nest of the chaffinch1 very firmly to the branches near it1 so that you cannot take it away without breaking it to pieces4 ,but rough as the outside is1 you would be astonished1 if you were to look at the inside1 and see how a bird1 and a small one too1 with nothing but its wings1 and tail1 and feet1 and bill for tools1 could ever have worked the down of plants together1 so as to make of it a piece of fine cloth4 ,it has a narrow neck1 something like a chimney1 at the top of it4 ,this is the entrance2 and at the lower end of it there is a lump1 which appears something like a small nest stuck on to the larger one2 sometimes there will be three or four of these small-looking nests1 and sometimes when there is a branch near the mouth of the nest which makes a good resting-place1 there will be none4 ,here is a picture1 boys1 of the outside of one of these nests4 ,illustration3 ,nest of the ,pinc-pinc4 ,these birds are easily watched2 and a ,french gentleman1 who has written the best account of the birds of ,africa1#aa says that he has found at least a hundred of these nests1 and watched the birds for a whole morning together1 and never saw one sitting on the small nest as a watch-bird2 but has seen both the male and female arrive at the nest together1 perch upon the nearest branch1 hop from this upon the edge of the little nest1 and then putting their heads into the hole1 dart into the large nest4 ,and now1 boys1 what do you think about the use of these little pockets8 ,oh1 ,uncle ,philip1 we think that what you tell us is always right1 because you know a great deal more than we do4 ,but1 boys1 you do not understand me4 ,i may be mistaken1 though ,i do know more than you4 ,i have been telling you my reasons for thinking these little pockets are nothing but perches4 ,do you think the reasons are good ones8 ,why1 yes1 ,uncle ,philip1 we do4 ,the ,french gentleman who watched the birds so much would have seen some of them using the pockets for a place to keep watch in1 if they were made for that4 ,right1 boys4 ,what ,i wish to teach you is to think for yourselves4 ,whenever any one gives you a reason for a thing1 just ask yourselves1 ',is this a good reason8' ,but1 ,uncle ,philip1 how did it happen that the other people who saw these birds should have said that these pockets were for the male bird to sit in and watch8 ,i suppose1 boys1 that they really thought so2 but then they had not noticed the birds enough to find out the truth4 ,it requires a great deal of time and patience to find out the truth about animals3 and this is the reason why so many mistakes have been printed about them4 ,it is a pity that such mistakes have been made2 for really there is enough that is very curious about them1 without men's making stories to appear strange4 ,but ,i think that there will be fewer mistakes made in future4 ,why so1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,because1 boys1 men are taking more pains to see for themselves4 ,there are more naturalists now than there were formerly2 and ,i hope there will be more still1 especially in our own large and beautiful country1 where there have not yet been many4 ,i hope that natural history will be studied in all our schools before a great while4 ,but let us go back to our ,african birds4 ,there is another kind which ,mr4 ,vaillant speaks of1 and ,i will tell you of that4 ,he calls it the capocier1 and he had a very fine opportunity to watch two of them4 ,it is a bird easily made gentle1 and he had managed by feeding two of them to make them so tame that they would come into his tent and hop about several times in a day1 though he never had them in a cage4 ,when it became time for them to build a nest1 they staid away for some time1 and would come to the tent once only in four or five days4 ,at last they began to come regularly1 as before1 and ,mr4 ,vaillant soon found out what they came for4 ,they had seen upon his table cotton and moss and flax1 which he used to stuff the skins of birds1 and which were always lying there2 and the capociers had come for these things1 to build their nest of them4 ,they would take up large bunches of them in their bills and fly away4 ,mr4 ,vaillant followed and watched them to see the nest built1 and found them at work in the corner of a garden1 by the side of a spring1 in a large plant which grew under the shade of a tree4 ,they were building in the fork of the branches1 and had laid the foundation1 which was about four inches high and six inches across4 ,this part was made of moss and flax1 mixed with grass and tufts of cotton4 ,the next day this gentleman never left the side of the nest3 the female was at work building1 and the male brought the materials4 ,in the morning the male bird made twenty-nine journeys to ,mr4 ,vaillant's table for flax and cotton and moss2 and in the afternoon he made seventeen4 ,he would help his mate to trample down and press the cotton with his body1 so as to make it into felt4 ,whenever he came with a load1 he would put it either upon the edge of the nest or upon some branch within reach of the female4 ,after he began to help the female at her work1 he would often break off1 and begin to play2 and sometimes1 as if in mischief1 he would pull down a little of her work4 ,she would get angry1 and peck him with her bill3 but he still continued to vex her1 until at last1 to save her work from being pulled down1 she would stop working1 and fly off from bush to bush1 to tease him4 ,they would then make up the quarrel1 and she set about her work1 while he would sing most delightfully for several minutes4 ,after his song was finished1 he would go to work again1 until he got into a new fit of mischief and frolic1 and then he would torment her as before4 ,on the third day the birds began to build the walls1 after having repeatedly pressed the bottom1 and turned themselves round upon it in all directions1 to make the nest solid4 ,they first made a plain border all around2 this they trimmed1 and on it they piled up tufts of cotton1 which they felted in by beating and pressing with their breasts and wings2 and if any part stuck out1 they worked it in with their bills1 so as to make all perfectly smooth and firm4 ,and they worked their nest round the branches near it1 just as the chaffinch does4 ,in seven days they finished it4 ,it was as white as snow1 and on the outside it was nine inches high1 and not smooth or regular in its shape2 but in the inside it was shaped exactly like a hen's egg1 with the small end up3 the hollow was five inches high1 and between four and five inches across2 and it was so neatly felted together that it might have been taken for a piece of fine cloth a little worn2 and so close that you could not take away any part without tearing the nest in pieces4 ,here is a picture of the nest1 boys1 and it is wonderful work for a small bird4 ,illustration3 ,nest of the ,capocier1 from ,vaillant's figure4 ,oh1 ,uncle ,philip6 we like the capociers very much4 ,when they were tired of working1 they were ready to play2 and when they had played enough1 they went back to work4 ,do not you think there was good sense in that8 ,yes1 boys1 ,i do3 it will not do1 either to work all the time or to play all the time4 ,all that we have to do is to take care that we do not spend more time than we should at either4 ,but there is a sweet little bird1 boys1 quite common in our own country1 which makes felt3 would you like to hear of it8 ,oh yes1 ,uncle ,philip4 ,what bird is it8 ,illustration3 ,nest of the ,humming-bird4 ,it is the humming-bird4 ,here is a drawing of its nest4 ,it is about an inch deep1 and an inch across2 and from a little distance1 appears more like a small knot upon the branch than like a bird's nest4 ,the outside of the nest from which this picture is made1 was covered with a kind of bluish-gray lichen1 that grows in scales upon old trees and fences3 this seemed to be glued on by the bird in some way or other4 ,the inside was the felt1 and was made of the fine down from seeds that float about in the air1 mixed with the down from mullein-weed and stalks of fine grass4 ,this1 boys1 is the smallest nest made by a bird1 ,i believe2 and some insects make larger houses for themselves than this bird does4 ,but ,i have not time at present to talk with you any longer1 as ,i have letters to write2 and therefore ,i must bid you good morning4 ,farewell1 ,uncle ,philip4 ,,footnote3 #aa ,m4 ,vaillant4 ,,conversation ,,xvi4 ,uncle ,philip tells the ,boys about ,birds that are ,weavers2 and about the ,politician-bird2 and a ,story about some ,philosophers2 and what may be learned from these ,conversations4 ,well1 boys1 were you pleased enough with our last conversation to wish to hear more about birds' nests8 ,yes1 if you please1 ,uncle ,philip4 ,you said something about birds that were weavers2 we should like to hear something of them4 ,very well1 then2 ,i will talk about the weavers this morning4 ,and the first thing ,i have to say is that this is no uncommon trade among birds4 ,take the nest of any of the common small birds that use hair for a lining1 and you will be apt to find some part of it woven4 ,but1 ,uncle ,philip1 you do not mean that birds weave as smoothly and regularly as people do6 ,not quite1 boys2 but still it is very fair weaving1 and done as our weaving is1 by working a hair or thread in and out between other hairs and threads1 or roots1 or bits of stick and grass4 ,the best way to see it1 is to remove the outside work of hay or roots very carefully1 or to take away the felt-work of wool or moss1 and you may see a round piece of hair-cloth1 sometimes finer1 and sometimes coarser1 according to the bird that made it1 and the things of which it is made4 ,in the common sparrow's nest the hair-cloth is very thin1 so that you can see through it easily2 but still every hair is woven in singly1 and always bent1 so as to lie smooth in the bottom of the nest4 ,and there are no ends of hairs left sticking out2 they are always worked into the moss which makes the outside of the nest4 ,uncle ,philip1 how do the birds make the hairs lie smooth in their places8 ,about that1 boys1 there is some uncertainty4 ,some persons think that the birds have a kind of glue in their mouths by which they make them stick2 and others suppose that they wet the hairs1 so as to make them bend4 ,but there are much better weavers than the common sparrow4 ,the red-breast and the yellow-hammer are both better workmen4 ,where do they get hairs4 ,uncle ,philip8 ,they find bunches of them sticking in the cracks of a fence or post where a horse or cow has been rubbing2 and some of these little creatures1 when they find such a bunch1 will pull it to pieces1 and work it in1 hair by hair4 ,are there many of these weaver-birds4 ,uncle ,philip8 ,yes1 boys1 a great many3 our country is quite full of them4 ,there is the mountain ant-catcher1#ab which will weave a nest of dry grass1 and wind the blades round the branches of a tree2 and the king-bird1#ac which first makes a basket frame-work of slender sticks1 and afterward weaves in wool and tow1 and lines it with hairs and dry grass4 ,there is another1 too1 the white-eyed fly-catcher1 which some have called the politician4 ,this bird builds its nest and hangs it up by the upper edge of the two sides on a vine4 ,the outside is made of pieces of rotten wood1 threads of dry stalks or weeds1 pieces of paper1 commonly old newspapers2 and all these are woven together with caterpillar's silk1 and lined with fine dry grass and hair4 ,uncle ,philip1 why do they call it the politician8 ,what is a politician8 ,what is commonly called a politician1 boys1 is a person who is always reading in newspapers about the government of the country1 and talking a great deal about the ,president and ,congress1 and the laws that are made1 and all such things3 but the real politician is one who studies the different kinds of government which have been in the world1 and endeavours to find out which is good and which is bad1 and why they are good or bad4 ,he reads1 too1 a great deal of history1 to learn how other nations have done1 what kind of laws they made1 and why they made them1 how they became great nations1 or how they became very poor2 and he thinks1 too1 a great deal1 that he may find out what will be best for his own nation4 ,it requires hard study and thought1 boys1 to make a good politician4 ,then1 ,uncle ,philip1 a man cannot learn how to be one out of the newspapers4 ,no1 boys2 not out of newspapers alone3 but still he will read them1 and very often learn from them things very useful to him in his business4 ,newspapers are valuable things1 and ,i think it is always best for a country to have a great many of them spread about in it4 ,but they will not1 of themselves1 make a man a politician2 and if you should ask the persons who print them1 whether they expect them to teach men all about governments1 they will tell you1 ,no3 but they will teach people what is doing in all the governments in the world4 ,no good government1 boys1 will ever be afraid to let the people have newspapers4 ,they are always fewest where the government is hardest upon the people4 ,but let us go back to the birds4 ,can you tell me now why some people call the fly-catcher a politician8 ,oh1 yes2 because he has so many bits of old newspapers about his nest4 ,that is the reason1 boys4 ,there is another kind of fly-catcher1 called the hooded fly-catcher1 and it weaves its nest of flax and strings pulled from the stalks of hemp3 but the best weaver in this country is the ,baltimore starling4 ,this bird chooses the ends of high bending branches for his nest1 and he begins in a forked twig1 by fastening strong strings of hemp or flax around both branches of the fork1 just as far apart as he means the width of his nest to be3 he then with the same kind of strings1 mixed in with pieces of loose tow1 weaves a strong1 firm kind of cloth1 which is like the hatter's felt in appearance1 only that you can see that the nest is woven1 not felted4 ,in this way he makes a pouch1 or purse1 six or seven inches deep1 and lines it on the inside with several soft things1 which he weaves into the outside netting1 and finishes the whole with horse-hair4 ,mr4 ,wilson describes one of these nests which he had4 ,he says that it was round like a cylinder4 ,do you know what a cylinder is8 ,no1 ,uncle ,philip4 ,a smooth round pillar to hold up a porch is a cylinder2 my walking-cane is a cylinder2 so is the straight body of a tree4 ,when these are of the same size all through their whole length1 they are perfect cylinders2 and any thing in that shape is a cylinder4 ,we understand you1 ,uncle ,philip2 a gun-barrel is a cylinder1 and there is a cylinder in your garden4 ,what is it8 ,the heavy stone roller that you let us pull over the walks4 ,illustration3 ,baltimore ,starling1 and ,nest4 ,right4 ,well1 this nest was like a cylinder1 about five inches across1 and seven inches long4 ,at the top the bird had worked a level cover1 so as to leave a hole only two inches and a half across2 at the bottom it was round4 ,it was made of flax1 tow1 hemp1 hair1 and wool1 and was woven into a complete cloth2 it was also tightly sewed through and through with long horse-hairs1 some of which when drawn out measured two feet4 ,here is a picture of this nest4 ,in the bottom it had bunches of cows' hair1 and these were also sewed down with horse-hairs4 ,this bird1 boys1 is a thief4 ,a thief1 ,uncle ,philip6 ,what does it steal8 ,when ,i say it is a thief1 boys1 ,i mean that it takes what does not belong to it3 but it is not a thief as man is4 ,when a man takes something which belongs to another person1 he knows that it is not his2 and therefore he steals3 but the poor bird does not know1 and that makes a difference4 ,you asked me what it steals3 ,i will tell you4 ,at the time for building its nest1 it will take whatever suits for that purpose2 and therefore the country women are obliged to watch their thread that they have put out to bleach3 the farmer1 too1 who has cut off young grafts from his fruit-trees and tied them up in bundles1 must be careful1 or the bird will pull at the string till he gets it off2 and sometimes1 when the bunch is not too large1 he will fly off with the whole4 ,in autumn1 when the leaves have fallen1 you may sometimes see skeins of silk and hanks of thread hanging about the starling's nest1 but so woven up and entangled in it that they are good for nothing4 ,now1 boys1 before this country was settled by people from ,europe1 where do you suppose the starling got silk and thread for his nest8 ,why1 ,uncle ,philip1 are you sure he got them at all8 ,a very sensible question1 boys4 ,when you are asked why a thing is so1 it is always well1 first to be satisfied that it is so1 before you begin to look for a reason4 ,i have read a story about this very thing3 would you like to hear it8 ,oh yes1 ,uncle ,philip4 ,well1 then1 ,i have read that there were once several philosophers 7,i told you what a philosopher is1 you know71 who were in the habit of meeting together to put questions to each other1 and to make new discoveries4 ,at one of these meetings1 one of them asked the others1 ',why a fish weighed more in the water than he did out of it8' ,several of them gave very wise reasons1 as they thought2 and all the reasons were different3 so they could not agree4 ,there was among them1 however1 a very sensible old gentleman1 who listened to them all1 but said nothing4 ,when he went home1 he got a fish and weighed it1 out of the water1 and wrote down its weight2 he then took a bucket of water1 and weighed that2 and when he dropped the fish in the bucket1 he found that it increased the weight of the whole1 precisely as many pounds as the fish had weighed out of the water2 so he found out that there was no reason why a fish weighed more in the water than he did out of it1 because it was not true3 his weight was the same either in or out of it4 ,ah1 ,uncle ,philip1 that is a pleasant story3 he was a sensible old gentleman4 ,yes1 boys1 he was2 and it was sensible in you to ask first whether the starling did use silk and thread before ,europeans came here2 and after that is answered1 it is time enough to ask where he got such things4 ,now the truth is1 that he did not use them until after ,europeans brought them here2 because there were no such things in this country3 for the ,indians who lived here could not make thread4 ,i think2 and ,i am sure they could not spin silk3 but ,i will tell you1 boys1 what it shows us2 and it is that ,i wish you to notice4 ,what is it1 ,uncle ,philip8 ,it is the wisdom of this bird in taking advantage of circumstances4 ,no doubt he built very good nests long before silk and thread were in the country2 but he had sense enough to know that they were exactly what suited him1 and he used them as soon as he could get them4 ,then1 ,uncle ,philip1 you think that the bird has reason8 ,no1 boys1 ,i do not3 but you have reason1 and ,i have something to say to you about it4 ,it is this3 as ,god has given you reason1 and so made you better than the poor dumb animals1 he expects more from you4 ,that is fair1 is it not8 ,yes1 ,uncle ,philip2 very fair4 ,then what ,i wish you to remember is this3 that you must use your reason in such way as to glorify ,god4 ,he gave it to you to learn his will and his commandments1 and to live accordingly4 ,so now you see the things which our conversations about the animals can teach us4 ,in the first place1 we see the goodness of ,god2 in the second place1 we see the power of ,god2 in the third place1 we see the wisdom of ,god3 and we see in ourselves that ,god has done more for us than he has done for them1 and therefore we ought to love and serve him3 we ought to believe what he says in his ,word2 we ought to pray to him for his blessed help2 we ought1 first of all1 to seek the salvation of our souls1 through our ,lord ,jesus ,christ4 ,now1 my dear children1 to-morrow ,i must leave home for a few weeks2 but when ,i come back we will talk together again3 and as ,i am going to see my nephews1 ,i will get a book which they printed about insects2 it is called the ,history of ,insects1#ad--;and ,i will bring it to you2 and some of the largest boys among you may read it aloud1 and ,i will explain to you what you cannot understand4 ,if you are pleased with what ,i have been telling you1 that book will tell you a great deal more4 ,oh1 thank you1 ,uncle ,philip4 ,we shall like it very much4 ,farewell1 boys4 ,good-by1 dear ,uncle ,philip4 ,,footnotes3 #ab ,myiothera obsoleta of ,bonaparte4 #ac ,tyrannus intrepidus4 #ad ,family ,library1 ,no4 ,,viii4--,publishers4 ,,the ,,end4 ,now republishing1 on good paper and large type1 in #ahmo4 volumes1 ,,social ,,evils ,,and ,,their ,,remedy4 ,a ,,series ,,of ,,narratives ,,to ,,be ,,published ,,quarterly4 ,,by ,,the ,,rev4 ,,charles ,b4 ,,tayler1 ,m4,a4 ,no4 ,i4 ,,the ,,mechanic4 ,,is ,,now ,,republished1 ,,and ,,for ,,sale ,,by ,,the ,,booksellers4 ,other foundation can no man lay than that is laid1 which is ,jesus ,christ4 ,,author',s ,,address ,no doubt can be felt as to the fact1 that there are at present many crying evils in all ranks of society--perhaps there never was a time when more remedies were proposed4 ,it is1 however1 a melancholy truth1 that the only remedy is too generally over-looked1 or despised4 ,remedies1 selfish in principle1 and selfish in their proposed end1 are held forth and confided in by those who profess to be ,christians1 and1 as such1 dependent on the ,great ,head of the church4 ,man is taught how to live in time1 and to be wise for time2 but it has become unusual to refer to that fine old scriptural prayer1 ,so teach us to number our days that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom4 ,indeed1 the wisdom desired by too many is that which is so forcibly described by an apostle's pen1 as earthly1 sensual1 devilish2 not that wisdom the attributes of which form the graces of man's new and regenerate character1 which is first pure1 then peaceable1 gentle1 and easy to be entreated2 full of mercy and good fruits1 without partiality1 and without hypocrisy4 ,it is intended1 in the series of narratives now advertised1 to set forth1 faithfully and simply1 the one great principle on which ,christians profess to act4 ,this principle should never be lost sight of1 in any publication addressed by a ,christian author to ,christian readers4 ,other foundation can no man lay1 than that is laid1 laid by ,infinite ,wisdom himself--which is ,christ ,jesus4 ,my illustrations will extend to every class of society2 from the highest to the lowest4 ,when it is found necessary to introduce the subject of political economy1 ,i shall endeavour to give what seem to me the right views of the subject2 and ,i shall take care to show1 that when political economy cannot be identified with ,christian economy1 it ought to occupy a subordinate place4 ,if it enters society as the servant of ,christian principle1 it may be very useful as a servant2 but1 if it is to teach a man to walk in the counsel of the ungodly1 to speak of its usefulness in a ,christian community is absurd4 ,false principles1 however taking they may be1 for a while1 with the ignorant1 or with those who are not deep thinkers1 can never stand for any length of time2 and as for the ungodly1 we know ,who has told us they are like the chaff which the wind driveth away4 ,i have undertaken this work in a spirit of prayer to ,god for ,his assistance1 and ,his blessing4 ,many of my readers4 ,i am sure1 will unite their prayers to mine1 that it may be continued in the same spirit4 ,some few may object to this address from a minister of ,christ to a ,christian community1 and say that it is according to the puritanical cant of the day4 ,i answer1 that such cant 7if mere cant7 is quite as offensive to me as to themselves2 almost as offensive as the cant of ungodliness2 but ,i cannot forget those words of solemn warning1 from ,one who1 alas1 is still the despised and rejected of many men3 ,whosoever shall be ashamed of me and of my words1 in this adulterous and sinful generation1 of him shall the ,son of man be ashamed1 when he cometh in the glory of his ,father with the holy angels4 ,the second number of ,social ,evils1 entitled ,the ,lady and the ,lady's ,maid1 will be republished about the #ast of ,february1 #ahcd4 99 99 99 99 99 ,,theological ,,library4 ,no4 ,i4 ,the ,life of ,wiclif4 ,by ,charles ,webb ,le ,bas1 ,a4,m4 ,,ii4 ,the ,consistency of the whole ,scheme of ,revelation with ,itself and with ,human ,reason4 ,by ,philip ,nicholas ,shuttleworth1 ,d4,d4 ,,iii41 ,,iv4 ,luther and the ,lutheran ,reformation4 ,by ,john ,scott1 ,a4,m4 ,v41 ,,vi4 ,the ,life of ,archbishop ,cranmer4 ,by ,charles ,webb ,le ,bas1 ,a4,m4 ,,vii41 ,,viii4 ,history of the ,reformed ,religion in ,france4 ,by ,rev4 ,edward ,smedley1 ,m4,a4 ,in ,press4 ---------------------------------------- ------------------------- ,transcriber's ,note3 99 ,obvious punctuation and spelling errors repaired4 99 ,original spelling and its variations were not standardized4 99 ,original use of quotation marks was left unchanged4 99 ,the word scattered is missing between pages #ace and #acf4 99 444 have got permission from your friends4444 ,this should be permission from parents1 as the context suggests4 99 ,italicized words are surrounded by underline characters1 like this4 ,words in bold characters are surrounded by equal signs1 like this4 99 ,footnotes were moved to the end of the paragraphs to which they applied and numbered in one continuous sequence4 ---------------------------------------- --------------------------