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| Observ. XLIX. Of an Ant or Pismire.<br> |
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| <p><font size="4">This was a creature, more troublesom to be drawn, then any |
| of the rest, for I could not, for a good while, think of a way to make it |
| suffer its body to ly quiet in a natural posture; but whil'st it was alive, |
| if its feet were fetter'd in Wax or Glew, it would so twist and wind its body, |
| that I could not any wayes get a good view of it; and if I killed it, its |
| body was so little, that I did often spoile the shape of it, before I could |
| throughly view it: for this is the nature of these minute Bodies, that as |
| soon, almost, as ever their life is destroy'd, their parts immediately shrivel, |
| and lose their beauty; and so is it also with small Plants, as I instanced |
| before, in the description of Moss. </font></p> |
| <p><font size="4">And thence also is the reason of the variations in the beards |
| of wild Oats, and in those of Muskgrass seed, that their bodies, being exceeding |
| small, those small variations which are made in the surfaces of all bodies, |
| almost upon every change of Air, especially if the body be porous, do here |
| become sensible, where the whole body is so small, that it is almost nothing |
| but surface; for as in vegetable substances, I see no great reason to think, |
| that the moisture of the Aire (that, sticking to a wreath'd beard, does make |
| it untwist) should evaporate, or exhale away, any faster then the moisture |
| of other bodies, but rather that the avolation from, or access of moisture |
| to, the surfaces of bodies being much the same, those bodies become most |
| sensible of it, which have the least proportion of body to their surface. |
| </font></p> |
| <p><font size="4">So is it also with Animal substances; the dead body of an |
| Ant, or such little creature, does almost instantly shrivel and dry, and |
| your object shall be quite another thing, before you can half delineate |
| it, which proceeds not from the extraordinary exhalation, but from the small |
| proportion of body and juices, to the usual drying of bodies in the Air, |
| especially if warm. </font></p> |
| <p><font size="4">For which inconvenience, where I could not otherwise remove |
| it, I thought of this expedient. I took the creature, I had design'd to delineate, |
| and put it into a drop of very well rectified spirit of Wine, this I found |
| would presently dispatch, as it were, the Animal, and being taken out of |
| it, and lay'd on a paper,the spirit of Wine would immediately fly away, |
| and leave the Animal dry, in its natural posture, or at least, in a constitution, |
| that it might easily with a pin be plac'd, in what posture you desired to |
| draw it, and the limbs would so remain, without either moving, or shriveling. |
| </font></p> |
| <p><font size="4">And thus I dealt with this Ant, which I have here delineated, |
| which was one of many, of a very large kind, that inhabited under the Roots |
| of a Tree, from whence they would sally out in great parties, and make most |
| grievous havock of the Flowers and Fruits, in the ambient Garden, and return back |
| again very expertly, by the same wayes and paths they went. </font></p> |
| <p><font size="4">It was more then half the bigness of an Earwig, of a dark |
| brown, or reddish colour, with long legs, on the hinder of which it would |
| stand up, and raise its head as high as it could above the ground, that it |
| might stare the further about it, just after the same manner as I have also |
| observ'd a hunting Spider to do: and putting my finger towards them, they |
| have at first all run towards it, till almost at it; and then they would stand |
| round about it, at a certain distance, and smell, as it were, and consider |
| whether they should any of them venture any further, till one more bold then |
| the rest venturing to climb it, all the rest, if I would have suffered them, |
| would have immediately followed : much such other seemingly rational actions |
| I have observ'd in this little Vermine with much pleasure, which would be |
| too long to be here related; those that desire more of them may satisfie |
| their curiosity in Ligons History of the Barbadoes. </font></p> |
| <p><font size="4">Having insnar'd several of these into a small Box, I made |
| choice of the tallest grown among them, and separating it from the rest, |
| I gave it a Gill of Brandy, or Spirit of Wine, which after a while e'en knock'd |
| him down dead drunk, so that he became moveless, though at first putting |
| in he struggled for a pretty while very much, till at last, certain bubbles |
| issuing out of his mouth, it ceased to move; this (because I had before found |
| them quickly to recover again, if they were taken out presently) I suffered |
| to lye above an hour in the Spirit; and after I had taken it out, and put |
| its body and legs into a natural posture, remained moveless about an hour; |
| but then, upon a sudden, as if it had been awaken out of a drunken sleep, |
| it suddenly reviv'd and ran away; being caught, and serv'd as before, he |
| for a while continued struggling and striving, till at last there issued |
| several bubbles out of its mouth, and then, tanquam animam expirasset, he |
| remained moveless for a good while ; but at length again recovering, it was |
| again redipt, and suffered to lye some hours in the Spirit; notwithstanding |
| which, after it had layen dry some three or four hours, it again recovered |
| life and motion: Which kind of Experiments, if prosecuted, which they highly |
| deserve, seem to me of no inconsiderable use towards the invention of the |
| Latent Scheme, (as the Noble Ve rulam calls it) or the hidden, unknown Texture |
| of Bodies. </font></p> |
| <p><font size="4">Of what Figure this Creature appear'd through the Microscope, |
| the 32. Scheme (though not so carefully graven as it ought) will represent |
| to the eye, namely, That it had a large head A A, at the upper end of which |
| were two protuberant eyes, pearl'd like those of a Fly, but smaller B B; |
| of the Nose, or foremost part, issued two horns C C, of a shape sufficiently |
| differing from those of a blew Fly, though indeed they seem to be both the |
| same kind of Organ, and to serve for a kind of smelling; beyond these were |
| two indented jaws D D, which he open'd sideways, and was able to gape them |
| asunder very wide; and the ends of them being armed with teeth, which meeting |
| went between each other, it was able to grasp and hold a heavy body, three |
| or four times the bulk and weight of its own body: It had only six legs, |
| shap'd like those of a Fly, which, as I shewed before, is an Argument that |
| it is a winged Insect, and though I could not perceive any sign of them in |
| the middle part of its body (which seem'd to consist of three joints or pieces |
| E F G, out of which sprung two legs, yet 'tis known that there are of them |
| that have long wings, and fly up and down in the air. </font></p> |
| <p><font size="4">The third and last part of its body I I I was bigger and |
| larger then the other two, unto which it was joyn'd by a very small middle, |
| and had a kind of loose shell, or another distinct part of its body H, which |
| seem'd to be interpos'd, and to keep the thorax and belly from touching. |
| The whole body was cas'd over with a very strong armour, and the belly I |
| I I was covered likewise with multitudes of small white shining brisles; |
| the legs, horns, head, and middle parts of its body were bestruck with hairs |
| also, but smaller and darker. </font></p> |
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