FIFTH DAY.
_Section_ I.--FISHES.
Of Fishes in general -- The Cetaceous kind -- Cartilaginous
-- Spinous -- Crustaceous -- and Testaceous. -- Animalcules. --
Religious Improvement.
On the _fifth day_ were created fishes, and the fowls of heaven,
whatsoever flies in the expansion above us, or swims in the watery
element: these were produced from the waters. “God said, Let the waters
bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl
that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven. And God
created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the
waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged
fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good. And God blessed
them, saying, Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the waters in the
seas, and let the fowl multiply in the earth.”
“See through this air, this ocean, and this earth,
All matter quick, and bursting into birth;
Above how high progressive life may go,
Around how wide, how deep extend below!
Vast chain of being, which from God began,
Nature’s ethereal, human, angel, man,
Beast, _bird_, _fish_, _insect_, what no eye can see,
No glass can reach; from infinite to THEE,
from THEE to _nothing_!”
It is generally granted that life is the highest perfection of
corporeal beings, the most inestimable jewel of the creation. Life,
though but in an insect, is more glorious than the sun. Solomon, making
a comparison between living and lifeless things, prefers the meanest
of living creatures before the best and noblest of dead things, “A
living dog is better than a dead lion.” How much soever we may be
astonished at the stupendous mass of inactive matter, yet the least
animated particle is still an object of greater admiration. God, in
creating the first individual of each species of living creatures, not
only gave a form to matter, but also a principle of life; inclosing in
each a greater or less quantity of organical particles, indestructible
and common to all organized beings. These pass from body to body,
perpetuating this life, and ministering to the nutrition and growth
of each. Thus every production, or increase by generation, is a
continuance of this life, of which every succession of creatures is
always full. The total quantity of life remains the same; for whatever
death seems to destroy, it does not affect that primitive life, which
is diffused through all organized beings.
However much the nature of life may perplex the most able, acute, and
diligent inquirers into the subject, or exceed the utmost reach of
human comprehension; yet we see that it enables creatures to act, as
it were, of themselves, and to seek and obtain such enjoyments as give
them a sensible pleasure. The creatures on which this amazing property
has been conferred, have also an inclination and ability to communicate
it to their own species, which will succeed one another till time
shall be no more! If we exercise our understanding on this remarkable
instance of creating energy, it will tend to excite in us the most
august thoughts of that almighty Being, who is the boundless source of
existence, vitality, and motion to all his creatures!
In the work of creation, observes a learned author, after the formation
of light, air, water, and earth, the originals of all material objects,
God proceeded from creatures less excellent to those of a superior
order. Such was his progress in the work of creation. Fish and fowl
were both formed out of the water. Hence there is a nearer alliance
and greater resemblance between the form and motions of creatures that
swim and those that fly, than between such as creep and those that walk
on the earth; and their bodies being intended to be lighter, and their
motion swifter, the wise Creator saw fit to form them from a light and
fluid element.
The number of the different species of fish to which names are
given, and with whose figure at least we are a little acquainted,
is, according to Linnæus, above four hundred. The majority of these
are confined to the sea, and would expire in the fresh water, though
there are a few which annually swim up the rivers, to deposit their
spawn. Among the various sizes, some have monstrous shapes, and amazing
qualities. Fishes are usually classed into three general divisions: the
_cetaceous_, or those of the whale kind; the _cartilaginous_, or those
which have gristles instead of bones; and the _spinous_, or bony kind,
called so from their bones resembling the sharpness of thorns.
In the cetaceous species are included all the various kinds of Whales,
the Norwhal, or Sea-Unicorn, the Dolphin, the Grampus, and the
Porpoise. Though “God created great whales,”[141] the words of Moses,
according to the original, התנינם הגדלים _ha-tan-neenin ha-gedoleen_,
says Dr. A. Clarke, must be understood rather as a general than a
particular term, comprising all the great aquatic animals, such as
these now mentioned. All these resemble quadrupeds in their internal
structure, and in some of their appetites and affections. Like
quadrupeds, they have lungs, a midriff, a stomach, intestines, liver,
spleen, bladder, and parts of generation; their heart also resembles
that of quadrupeds, with its partitions closed up as in them, and
driving red and warm blood in circulation through the body; and to keep
these parts warm, the whole kind are also covered between the skin
and the muscles with a thicker coat of fat or blubber. The _aorta_,
or principal artery, in that stupendous animal the _whale_, measures
about a foot in diameter; and it is computed that the quantity of blood
thrown into it, at every pulsation of the heart, is not less than from
_ten to fifteen gallons_.
“Nature’s strange work, vast Whales of differing form,
Toss up the troubled floods and are themselves a storm;
Uncouth the sight, when they, in dreadful play
Discharge their nostrils, and refund a sea;
Or angry lash the foam with hideous sound,
And scatter all the watery dust around.
Fearless the fierce destructive monsters roll,
Ingulph the fish, and drive the flying shoal.
In deepest seas these living isles appear,
And deepest seas can scarce their pressure bear:
Their bulk would more than fill the shelvy strait,
And fathom’d depths would yield beneath their weight.”
These animals possessing finer organs and higher sensations than
others, show an eminent superiority. They have all the tenderness of
birds or quadrupeds for their young, nurse them with constant care, and
protect them from every injury. The female never produces more than
one young, or two at the most; and this she suckles entirely in the
manner of quadrupeds, her breasts being placed, as in the human kind,
above the navel. The ends of these she protrudes at pleasure, to afford
nutriment to her offspring. Perhaps the prophet Jeremiah has an eye to
this when he says, “The sea-monsters draw out the breast, they give
suck to their young ones.” Those of the cartilaginous kind, though not
capable of nursing their young, yet bring them alive into the world,
and defend them with courage and activity; while the spinous kind, a
fierce, unmindful tribe, deposit their spawn, and leave the success to
accident, without affording any protection.
As this first class of sea animals breathe the air, it is obvious they
cannot bear to be a long time at once under water. They necessarily,
every two or three minutes, emerge to the surface to take breath, as
well as to spout out through their nostril (for they have but one),
that water which they sucked in while gaping for their prey.
“Hugest of living creatures, on the deep,
Stretched like a promontory, sleeps or swims,
And seems a moving land, and at his gills
Draws in, and at his trunk spouts out, a sea.”
Their tails therefore are different from those of all other fish: they
are placed so as to lie flat upon the surface of the water; while
the other kinds have their tails, as we frequently see, upright or
edge-ways. This position of the tail enables them to force themselves
suddenly to the surface of the water, at pleasure. How well is it that
animals of this enormous size do not approach our shores, for their
presence would fright the other valuable fish from our coasts: they
are therefore kept in the abysses of the ocean: just as wild beasts,
impelled by the same over-ruling Power, which hide themselves in the
recesses of the forest.[142]
The cartilaginous tribe, which have gristles instead of bones, unite
the principal of both the other classes in their conformation: like the
cetaceous, they have organs of hearing, and lungs: like the spinous,
they have gills, and a heart without a partition. From the structure
of their gills, these animals are enabled to live a longer time out
of water than other fishes. The cartilaginous Shark, or Ray, lives
some hours after it is taken; while the spinous Herring, or Mackarel,
expires a few minutes after it is brought on shore. Some of this
class bring forth their young alive; and others produce them by eggs,
which are afterwards brought to maturity. Most fishes having cold
blood, have not heat sufficient to produce the fœtus. The all-wise
Creator therefore has ordained, that many of them shall propagate their
species by eggs, and this they do near the shore; where, by means of
the solar rays, the water is warmer, and fitter for that purpose; and
also because water-insects abound more there, which afford the young
fry nourishment. To the fish of the ocean, which cannot reach the
shores by reason of the distance, the Creator has given eggs that swim,
and these are hatched amidst the floating fucus, called _sargazo_.
In all, however, the manner of gestation is nearly the same: for,
on dissection, it is ever found, that the young, while in the body,
continue in the egg till a very little time before they are brought
forth; and as soon as they leave the shell, they also begin to quit
the womb. It is confidently asserted, that the young of the several
species of the Shark, when pursued, will take refuge in the belly of
its mother, by swimming in at her mouth. Of the same class of fishes
are the Ray, the Torpedo,[143] the Lamprey, the Sturgeon, the Diodon,
the Angler, the Lump-Sucker, the Pipe Fish, the Hippocampus, or Sea
Horse, the Sea Porcupine, and the Galley Fish.
Of the spinous, or bony kind of fishes, these are obviously
distinguished from the rest, by having a complete bony covering to
their gills; by their being furnished with no other method of breathing
than through the gills only; by their bones which are sharp and thorny;
and by their tails, which are placed in a situation perpendicular to
the body. The history of any one of this order very much resembles
that of all the rest. They propagate not by bringing forth their young
alive, as do the cetaceous tribes, nor by distinct eggs, as do the
generality of the cartilaginous tribes, but by spawn, or pease, as they
are generally called, which they produce by hundreds of thousands. The
bones of this order of fishes, when examined slightly, appear to be
entirely solid; yet, when viewed more closely, every bone is seen to be
hollow, and filled with a substance less rancid and oily than marrow.
These bones are very numerous, and pointed; and, as in quadrupeds,
are the props or stays to which the muscles are fixed, which move the
different parts of the body. The number of bones in all spinous fishes
of the same kind is always the same. As this species partake less of
the quadruped in their formation than any other, so they can bear to
live out of their own element a shorter time. Some, indeed, are more
vivacious in air than others: the eel will live several hours out of
water; and the carp has been known to be fattened in a damp cellar. The
method is, by placing the fish in a net well wrapped up in wet moss,
the mouth only out, and hung up in a vault; then fed with white bread
and milk, and the net sometimes plunged into the water.
The spinous class of fishes is more prolific than any other animal.
Although their usual way of propagation is by spawn, yet there are
some, such as the eel and the blenney, which produce their young
alive. Their power of increasing is such, that if they were suffered
to multiply unmolested, and remain undiminished for only a few years,
the progeny of an individual would far exceed all human calculation.
It is asserted, that a single herring, in the space of twenty years,
would yield an offspring greater in bulk than ten such globes as this
we inhabit. A female herring deposits at least 10,000 eggs, in the sea
near to Great Britain![144] A tench lays 1,000 eggs. There have been
200,000 ova or eggs found in a carp; and in one of eighteen inches,
342,144: in a perch, weighing one pound two ounces, 69,216; and in
a sturgeon of one hundred and sixty pounds, there was the enormous
number of 1,467,500. Leewenhoeck counted in a middling-sized cod, _nine
million_ 384,000.
This multiplication of fishes is very astonishing; but the fact is,
as they are obliged to devour one another for necessary subsistence,
the whole natives of the deep without these extraordinary supplies,
would soon be totally extinct. Were they to bring forth no more
at a birth than land animals, the increase would be far too small
for the consumption. The weaker species would soon be destroyed by
the stronger, and the latter would soon after perish. Therefore to
supply millions of animals with food, and yet not depopulate the
watery realms, the issue produced by some of their species is almost
incredible. The spawn is not by scores, but by millions: and by this
amazing expedient, constant reparation is made proportionable to the
immense havoc.
As the different species of fishes are designed to occupy the waters,
and range to and fro in that element, so they are wonderfully formed
for that purpose. The chief instruments of the motion of a fish are
the fins, which in some fishes are more numerous than in others. The
fish in a state of repose, spreads all its fins, and seems to rest on
its pectoral and ventral fins near the bottom: on folding the right
pectoral fin, its body inclines to the right side; and on folding the
left fin, it inclines to that side.--When the fish desires to have
a retrograde motion, striking with the pectoral fins, in a contrary
direction, effectually produces it. When the fish desires to turn, a
blow from the tail sends it round; but if the tail strike both ways,
then the motion is progressive. If the dorsal and ventral fins be cut
off, the fish reels both to the right and left, and endeavors to supply
its loss by keeping the rest of the fins in constant action. If the
right pectoral fin be cut off, the fish leans to that side; if the
ventral fin on the same side be cut off, then it loses its equilibrium
entirely. When the tail is cut off, the fish loses all motion, and is
carried wherever the water impels it.
In addition to the fins, an aquatic animal is furnished with an air
bladder, a philosophical apparatus in its body; this sustains and
enables it, at will to raise itself to the surface of the water, or,
otherwise, to descend. When any accident has burst this air bladder,
or it has been punctured by way of experiment, the fish remains at the
bottom of the vessel or river, totally unable to ascend. Flounders,
Soles and Skates, which are without this appendage, seldom rise in
the water, and when they do, require a great effort. The simple
action of the fins is not sufficient to raise the fish, its specific
gravity being greater than the fluid in which it is immersed. The
bag containing the air is supposed to be muscular, and when the air
is compressed into a smaller compass by the action of this muscular
power, the bulk of the fish is contracted with it; whereby, since the
absolute weight remains the same, the specific gravity, which is the
sinking force, is increased, and the fish sinks; when, on the contrary,
this compression is removed, the air bladder expands, the fish is
specifically lighter, and it ascends.
In fish, we find the arrangement of the teeth nicely adapted to the
habits of the different species. For instance, in the Pike, the teeth
are placed with their points projecting backwards towards the throat,
by which an easy ingress is afforded, but which at the same time
prevents all egress, and retains most effectually the prey when seized.
The alarm excited among smaller fishes at the approach of the Pike, is
thus poetically expressed:
“_Beware_, ye harmless tribes, the _tyrant comes_,
Exclaims the silver mantled naiad of the pond;
_Beware_, ye flirting _gudgeons_, _barbles_ fair,
And ye, quick-swimming _minnows_, gliding _eels_,
And all who breathe the lucid crystal of the lake,
Or lively sport between the dashing wheels
Of river mills, _beware_; the _tyrant comes_!
Grim death awaits you in his gaping jaws,
And lurks behind his hungry fangs--_beware_!”
The Sword-Fish is distinguished by the upper jaw, which runs out in the
figure of a strong and sharp sword, sometimes to the length of three
feet, with which he scruples not to engage the whale himself.[145] The
Sun-Fish is one round mass of flesh; only it has two fins, which act
the part of oars.
The great Creator has beautified the innumerable myriads that swim
in the vast ocean, giving the greatest proportion to their shapes,
the gayest colors to their skins, and a polished surface to their
scales. The eyes of some are surrounded with a scarlet circle; while
the backs of others are diversified with crimson stains. View them
when they glance along the stream, or when they are fresh from their
native brine; the silver is not more bright, nor the rainbow more
glowing than their vivid, glossy hues! But we are lost in wonder at the
exquisite contrivance and delicate formation of their gills: by which
they are accommodated, even in that dense medium, with the benefits of
respiration! A piece of mechanism this, possessed by the meanest of
the watery tribe; yet infinitely surpassing, in the fineness of the
structure of its operation, whatever is curious in the works of art,
or commodious in the palaces of princes.
As the spinous order of fishes is extremely numerous, various modes of
classing them have been followed by different naturalists. The simplest
is that of Linnæus, who ranks them in four divisions, according to
the positions of the fins. The 1st division is what that celebrated
naturalist terms _Apodal_; and includes the most imperfect of the
order, namely, those which want the ventral or belly fins, and it
consists of the following genera:--The Eel, the Wolf-Fish, the Launce,
or Sand-Eel, and The Sword Fish.--The 2d division consists of the
_Jugular_ fishes, or those which have ventral fins before the pectoral,
or nearer to the gills; and includes the Dragonet, the Weever, the
Cod, and the Blenny. The 3d division is called the _Thoracic_, or
those fishes which have the belly fins immediately under the pectoral;
and includes the Goby, or Roch-Fish, the Bull-head, the Doree, the
Flounder, the Wrasse, the Perch, the Stickleback, the Mackerel,
the Surmulet, and the Gurnard. The 4th division consists of the
_Abdominal_, or those which have the ventral fins behind the pectoral,
nearer the tail, and includes the Loach, the Salmon, the Pike, the
Argentine, the Atherine, the Mullet, the Flying-Fish, the Herring, the
Carp, &c. To the fishes, included in these four divisions, must be
added, all the several species belonging to each, some of which are
numerous.
There are two classes of animals inhabiting the water, which commonly
receive the name of fishes, entirely different from the preceding ones,
and also very distinct from each other. They are divided by naturalists
into crustaceous and testaceous: both of which, being totally unlike
fishes in appearance, seem to invert the order of nature. As those of
the cetaceous, cartilaginous, and spinous orders, have their bones on
the inside, and their muscles externally placed for the purpose of
life and motion; so these, on the contrary, have all their bony parts
on the outside, and their muscles within. For instance, persons who
have seen a Lobster, or an Oyster, perceive that their shells bear a
strong analogy to the bones of other aquatic animals; and that by these
coverings they are sustained and defended.
Crustaceous fishes, such as the Crab and Lobster, have shells
resembling a firm crust, and in some measure capable of yielding to
pressure or strength. Testaceous fishes, such as the Oyster or Cockle,
are furnished with shells of considerable hardness, very brittle,
and susceptible of yielding to compressure like the others. Of the
crustaceous kinds, are the Lobster, the Crab, and the Turtle:[146]
and the testaceous, includes the numerous tribes of Oysters, Muscles,
Cockles, and Sea Snails. Some of these are extremely prolific. Under
the tail of a Lobster, Dr. Baster says, he counted 12,444 eggs, besides
those that remained in the body unprotruded. The female Turtle lays
about eighty or ninety eggs at a time, each the size of a pigeon’s egg,
in a hole prepared with her fore feet in the sand, a little above the
high-water mark, which she covers so dexterously, that it is no easy
task to find the place; and then returns to the sea, leaving them to
be hatched by the solar rays. At the end of fifteen days, she deposits
about the same number of eggs again: and in fifteen days more, repeats
the same; three times in all, using the same precautions every time for
their safety.
Among shell-fish, how various is their figures? The shells of some seem
to be the rude production of chance, rather than of skill or design.
Yet, even in these, we find the nicest dispositions. Though uncouth,
they are exactly suited to the exigencies of their respective tenants.
Some, on the other hand, are extremely neat; their structure is all
symmetry and elegance; no enamel is comparable to their polish. Not
a room in all the palaces of Europe is so adorned as the tenement of
the little fish that dwells in Mother of Pearl. Where else is such a
mixture of red, blue, and green, so delightfully staining the most
clear and glittering ground? But what is more admirable than all
their beauty, is the provision made for their safety. As they have
no speed to escape, so they have no dexterity to elude their foe: so
that, were they naked, they must be an easy prey to every free-booter.
To prevent this, what is only clothing to other animals, is to them
clothing, habitation, and castle. They have a fortification which grows
with them, and is part of themselves. And by means of this, they live
secure amidst millions of ravenous jaws. The dark inky fluid, which the
Cuttle-Fish emits when alarmed, not only tinges the water, but, at the
same time, is so bitter, as immediately to drive off its enemies.
“Th’ endangered _cuttle_ thus evades his fears,
And native hoards of fluid safely bears.
A pitchy ink peculiar glands supply,
Whose shades the sharpest beams of light defy.
Pursued he bids the sable fountain flow,
And, wrapt in clouds, eludes th’ impending foe.
The fish retreats unseen, while self-born night,
With pious shade, befriends her parent’s flight.”
The Nautilus, when he means to sail, discharges a quantity of water
from his shell, by which it is rendered lighter than the surrounding
medium, and, of course, rises to the surface. The shell forms a kind of
boat, and he extends two of his arms upward, which are each furnished
at their extremity with an oval membrane, that he unfurls to the wind
for a sail. The other six arms hang over the sides of the shell, and
supply the place of either oars or rudder, with which he rows himself
along. When disposed to dive, he strikes sail, and at once sinks to
the bottom. When the weather is calm, he ascends again, and performs
his voyage without chart or compass.
“Two feet they upwards raise, and steady keep;
These are the masts and rigging of the ship.
A membrane stretched between supplies the sail,
Bends from the masts, and swells before the gale.
The other feet hang paddling on each side,
And serve for oars to row, and helm to guide.
’Tis thus they sail, pleased with the wanton game,
The fish, the sailor, and the ship the same.
But, when the swimmers dread some danger near,
The sportive pleasure yields to stronger fear:
No more they wanton drive before the blasts,
But strike the sails, and bring down all the masts.
The rolling waves their sinking shells o’erflow,
And dash them down again to sands below.”
Thus, we see, according to the beneficent purpose and blessing of God,
the “waters bring forth abundantly.” The finny tribes are numerous
beyond all calculation; they crowd to our shores in vast abundance,
from which our markets are regularly and plentifully supplied. And, as
one judiciously observes, what a merciful provision is this for the
necessities of man! Many hundreds of thousands of mankind live, during
a great part of the year, on fish only. Fishes, which are liable to few
diseases, afford not only a wholesome, but a very nutritive diet; and
generally come in vast quantities to our shores, when in their greatest
perfection. In this also we may perceive that the kind providence of
God goes hand in hand with his creating energy; for, while manifesting
his wisdom and power, he is making a permanent provision for the
sustenance of man through all his generations. The Mackerel, the
Herring, and various other kinds, when lean, wander up and down the
ocean: but when fat they throng our creeks and bays, or haunt the
running streams. Who bids these creatures leave our shores when they
become unfit for our service? Who rallies and recalls the undisciplined
vagrants, as soon as they are improved into desirable food? Surely
the furlough is signed, the summons issued, and the point of re-union
settled, by a Providence ever indulgent to mankind, and loading us with
benefits.
By the invention and assistance of magnifying glasses, the two extremes
of the creation, as Mr. Baker intimates, which were out of the reach of
former ages, have been brought under our observation: the telescope is
directed to the heavenly bodies, and the microscope to unknown species
of animals, &c. The first appearance of the microscope was about the
year 1621; since which period it has been very much improved. It is to
this valuable optical instrument that we are indebted for a great part
of our present philosophy: we are brought into a kind of new world.
Numberless animals are discovered, which, from their minuteness, must
otherwise for ever have escaped our observation. How many kinds of
these invisibles there may be, says Mr. Adams, is still unknown; as
they are discerned of all sizes, from those which are barely invisible
to the naked eye, to such as resist the action of the microscope, as
the fixed stars do that of the telescope, and with the greatest powers
hitherto invented appear only as so many moving points.
The smallest living creatures our instruments can show, are those which
inhabit the waters; for though animalcules, equally minute, may fly in
the air, or creep upon the earth, it is scarcely possible to get a view
of them; but as water is transparent, and confines the creatures in it,
we are able, by applying a drop of it to our glasses, to discover, to
a certain degree of smallness, all that it contains.
“Where the pool
Stands mantled o’er with green, invisible,
Amid the floating verdure millions stray.
Each liquid, too, whether it pierces, soothes,
Inflames, refreshes, or exalts the taste,
With various forms abounds. Nor is the stream
Of purest crystal, nor the livid air,
Though one transparent vacancy it seem,
Void of their unseen people. These, concealed
By the kind art of forming Heaven, escape
The grosser eye of man: for, if the worlds
In worlds inclosed should on his senses burst,
From cates ambrosial and the nectared bowl,
He would abhorrent turn; and in dead night,
When silence sleeps o’er all, be stunned with noise.”
Leewenhoeck calculates, that a thousand millions of animalcules, which
may be discovered in common water, are not altogether so large as a
common grain of sand! Eminent naturalists have discovered not less
than 30,000 in a single drop of water! What a display is this of the
manifold wisdom of God! While he makes some of the aquatic tribes so
large, that they seem to require almost a whole sea to float in, he
forms others so astonishingly minute, that several thousands will
adhere to the point of a needle.[147]
Every animalcule being an organized body, how delicate and subtile
must the parts be that are necessary to constitute it, and to preserve
its vital actions! How inconceivably small must it be, and yet a
perfect animal. In animalcules, we discover the same multiplication
of parts, diversity of figures, and variety of motions, as in the
largest animals. How amazingly curious must be the internal structure
of these creatures! how minute the bones, joints, muscles, tendons!
how exquisitely delicate the veins, arteries, nerves! What a number of
vessels and different circulations must be contained in one of these
little creatures, and yet all have sufficient room for the performance
of their several functions, without interfering with each other! It
is difficult to conceive how in so narrow a compass, there should be
contained a heart as the fountain of life propelling the circulating
fluid, veins and arteries as the conductors of the blood, a brain to
supply nerves in every part of the minute structure, muscles necessary
to its motions, glands for the secretion of its fluids, stomach, and
bowels to digest its food, eyes to direct its progress, a mouth to take
in its nourishment, and organs of generation to propagate its kind!
“How sweet to muse upon His skill display’d
(Infinite skill!) in all that he has made.
To trace in Nature’s most minute design,
The signature and stamp of Power Divine;
Contrivance exquisite expressed with ease,
Where unassisted sight no beauty sees;
The shapely limb and lubricated joint,
Within the small dimensions of a point;
Muscle and nerve miraculously spun;
His mighty work, who speaks, and it is done;
Th’ invisible in things scarce seen revealed;
To whom an atom is an ample field.”
Animalcules in general, continues Mr. Adams, are observed to move in
all directions with equal ease and rapidity, sometimes obliquely,
sometimes straight forward; sometimes moving in a circular direction,
or rolling upon one another, running backwards and forwards through
the whole extent of the drop, as if diverting themselves; at other
times greedily attacking the little parcels of matter they meet with.
Notwithstanding their extreme minuteness, they know how to avoid
obstacles, or to prevent any interference with one another in their
motions: sometimes they will suddenly change the direction in which
they move, and take an opposite one; and, by inclining the glass on
which the drop of water is, as it can be made to move in any direction,
so the animalcules appear to move as easily against the stream as with
it. When the water begins to evaporate, they flock towards the place
where the fluid is, and show a great anxiety and uncommon agitation
of the organs with which they draw in the water. These motions grow
languid as the water fails, and at last cease altogether, without a
possibility of renewal if they be left dry for a short time. They
sustain a great degree of cold as well as insects, and will perish in
much the same degree of heat that destroys insects. Some animalcules
are produced in water at the freezing point, and some insects live in
snow.
[In the American Journal of Science and Arts for April,
1830, there is a letter to the editor, from _Dr. Joseph E.
Muse_, from which the following is an extract:
“When the winter had made considerable progress, without
much frost, there happened a heavy fall of snow; apprehending
that I might not have an opportunity of filling my ice house
with ice, I threw in snow, perhaps enough to fill it; there was
afterwards severely cold weather, and I filled the remainder
with ice; about August the waste and consumption of ice,
brought us down to the snow; when it was discovered that a
glass of water which was cooled with it, contained hundreds
of animalcules, I then examined another glass of water, out
of the same pitcher, and with the aid of a microscope, before
the snow was put in it, found it perfectly clear and pure; the
snow was then thrown into it, and on solution the water again
exhibited the same phenomenon; hundreds of animalcules, visible
to the naked eye with acute attention, and when viewed through
the microscope resembling most diminutive shrimps; and wholly
unlike the eels discovered in the acetous acid, were seen in
the full enjoyment of animated nature.
“I caused holes to be dug in several parts of the mass of
snow in the ice house, and to the centre of it; and in the most
unequivocal and repeated experiments had similar results.”]
There is one remarkable circumstance, says Mr. Lobb, that we must not
pass over in our contemplation of these minute animals: which is, that
they are found proportionably much stronger, more active and vivacious,
than large ones. The spring of a flea in its first leap, how vastly
does it outstrip any thing of which animals are capable! A mite, how
vastly swifter does it run than a racehorse! M. de L’Isle has given
the computation of the velocity of a little creature scarcely visible
by its smallness, which he found to run three inches in half a second:
now, supposing its feet to be the fiftieth part of a line, it must make
500 steps in the space of three inches; that is, it must shift its legs
500 times in a second, or in the ordinary pulsation of an artery!
The modes of propagation among these animalcules are various, and the
observation of them is extremely curious. Some multiply by a transverse
division; and it is remarkable, that though in general they avoid
one another, it is not uncommon, when one is nearly divided, to see
another push itself upon the small neck which joins the two bodies in
order to accelerate the separation. Others, when about to multiply,
fix themselves to the bottom of the water; then becoming first oblong,
and afterwards round, turn rapidly as on a centre, but perpetually
varying the direction of their rotatory motion. In a little time, two
lines forming a cross are perceived: after which the spherule divides
into four, which grow, and are again divided as before.[148] A third
kind multiply by a longitudinal division, which in some begins in the
fore part, in others in the hind part; and from others a small fragment
detaches itself, which in a short time assumes the shape of the parent
animalcule. Lastly, others propagate in the same manner as the more
perfect animals.
The same rule seems to hold good in these minute creatures, which is
observable in the larger animals, namely, that the larger kinds are
less numerous than such as are smaller, while the smallest of all are
found in such multitudes, that there seem to be myriads for one of the
others. They increase in size, like other animals, from their birth,
till they have attained their full growth: and when deprived of proper
nourishment, they in like manner grow thin and perish.
And, if the extreme minuteness of the parts of animalcules is not
merely surprising, but far above our utmost conception, what shall
we say to those various species, to which the mite itself, in point
of size, is, as it were, an elephant? Naturalists suppose another
species, or order, of invisible animalcules; namely, such as escape
the cognizance even of the best microscopes, and give many probable
conjectures concerning them. Reason and analogy give some support to
the existence of an infinite number of these imperceptible creatures.
The naked eye, say some, takes in from the Elephant to the Mite; but
there commences a new order, reserved only for the microscope, which
comprehends all these from the Mite to those twenty-seven millions of
times smaller; and this order cannot be said to be exhausted, if the
microscope be not arrived at its last degree of perfection.
* * * * *
Among the Egyptians, all the natives of the water were in some degree
esteemed sacred. In many parts the people did not feed upon them. The
priests in particular never tasted this kind of food; and the reason
why they abstained from it, was the sanctity imputed to this class of
creatures. For they were sometimes considered as sacred emblems: at
other times worshipped as real deities. One species of fish called
Oxurunchus, had, according to Strabo, a temple, and divine honors paid
to it. A fish called Phagrus, was, according to Clemens Alexandrinus,
worshipped at Syene. The Lepidotus and Eel, were, as we find from
Herodotus, objects of adoration; being each, sacred to the god Nilus.
This is ridiculed by Antiphanes, who says, that an Eel among the
Egyptians was reverenced equally with their gods.
The Jews were under a divine prohibition not to make an idolatrous
graven image or likeness of any aquatic animals. However strange this
idolatry may appear, yet, such was its extent, that it prevailed
not only in Syria, but in the borders of Lebanon, also at, Ascalon,
Ashdod, and Joppa, cities within the precincts of the tribes of Dan
and Judah. Hence we see the propriety of the judgments inflicted upon
the Egyptians. “And the Lord spake unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Take
thy rod, and stretch out thine hand upon the waters of Egypt, upon
their streams, upon their rivers, and upon their ponds, and upon all
their pools of water, that they may become blood.--Against all the
gods of Egypt I will execute judgment.--And the fish that was in the
river died: and the river stunk.” This was a punishment particularly
well adapted to the state of that blinded and infatuated people: as
it showed them the baseness of those elements which they reverenced,
and the insufficiency of the gods in which they trusted. And this
remarkable display of the Divine displeasure was the means of affording
knowledge very salutary to the Israelites; as it served to warn them
not to fall into the same or any similar act of idolatry, when they had
seen it thus debased and exposed, and attended with such instances of
accumulated evil.[149]
Father Lamy remarks, that the principal parts of Fishes are the gills,
scales, and fins. Some have scales, and no fins; others have neither
scales nor fins. Upon which is founded the distinction which Moses
makes of clean and unclean fishes. Such as have neither scales nor
fins are thought unclean. The authority for this is what the Lord
commanded Moses to communicate to the children of Israel. “These
shall ye eat of all that are in the waters: whatsoever hath fins and
scales in the waters, in the seas, and in the rivers, them shall ye
eat. And all that have not fins and scales in the seas, and in the
rivers, of all that move in the waters, and of any living thing which
is in the waters, they shall be an abomination unto you: they shall
be even an abomination unto you; ye shall not eat of their flesh, but
you shall have their carcases in abomination.” The physical reason
for this distinction may be, because those which have fins and scales
are the most nourishing; and the others, which are without fins and
scales, being, in general, very difficult of digestion,--such as the
Conger, Eel, &c, which are too gross and fat for many stomachs. Among
the Romans, no fishes were suffered to be offered up in sacrifice, or
served up to the table of the gods, but such as were scaly.
In this distinction, direction, and prohibition, concerning fishes,
there is a further meaning. Dr. Spencer says, “God ordained this
distinction of meats, that the puerile nation of the Hebrews might be
led by an application of this law to the first elements of sanctity
and actual purity. And this conjecture is founded upon the reason
God himself has assigned for this institution; for after he had
delivered the law about separating the clean from the unclean animal,
he immediately adds, ‘Be ye holy, for I the Lord your God am holy.’
Which words St. Peter applies not to legal but to evangelical sanctity,
such as we should aspire to through the whole course of our lives.
I must not deny that the text of Leviticus, in the outward letter,
requires only a sort of legal sanctity, extending merely to corporeal
purification: but it is agreeable to the umbratic nature of that law,
that we should believe those words to have contained a more sacred
meaning at the bottom, and to have directed the Jews to a sort of
purity properly so called, and conformable to that of the Divine nature
itself, under the figure of external purification.” Indeed without
a view to the moral purification of the soul, an institution merely
affecting the body would be but of minor importance.
This distinction then being founded upon the moral principles of good
and evil, no doubt the peculiarities of the animals themselves will
serve to furnish instruction. A celebrated writer on this subject
remarks:--The progressive motion of fishes is owing to the tail: for
so may a boat be driven forward by the agitation of a single oar from
the stern. The fins serve to keep a fish upright, and support it while
it is stationary in any part of the water. The centre of gravity being
above the middle region of the body, a fish floats unnaturally with
its back downwards, when the fins are taken off. The scales of fishes,
which are very hard, bright, and radiated, compose a sort of armor,
which serves for their defence, and adds at the same time an appearance
of light and purity. The fishes thus distinguished differ as much in
their way of life from the smooth and slimy inhabitants of the waters,
as in their color and appearance; for they are generally disposed to
raise themselves from the bottom, and swim about with agility in the
superior regions of the water; while the Eel buries itself in the mire,
and all the crustaceous tribe lie scrabbling upon the ground. Fishes
of the Eel or snake kind are disturbed by thunder and storms, and swim
about when the waters are thick and turbulent: but as soon as the
elements are at rest again, they presently slide down to their native
mud.
Thus the mind, when polluted with impiety, and bowed down with
unbelief, cannot be raised to the contemplation of evangelical truth,
unless it is alarmed by the fear of Divine judgments; on which occasion
profligate sinners are sometimes most violently agitated, hurrying
themselves as fast as they can into a state of repentance. But as this
is a temporary repentance, excited merely by a fear of suffering,
the effect abides no longer than the cause continues to operate;
and so their terrors and their penitence vanish together. When there
was alarming thunder and destructive hail in the land of Egypt, and
fire from the Lord ran along the ground, even Pharaoh could recollect
himself, and say, “I have sinned this time: the Lord is righteous, and
I and my people are wicked. But when he saw that the rain, and the
hail, and the thunders were ceased, he sinned yet more, and hardened
his heart, he and his servants.” Such is the fruitless issue of that
involuntary repentance, which has no principle of Divine grace to
support it. The moral of this distinction is obvious: the whole being
a figurative monition, that a sordid and groveling way of life was to
be abhorred by those who professed to serve God; whose mind being under
the direction of revealed truth, and influence of the Holy Spirit,
their affections were to be raised from vice to virtue, from pollution
to purity, from things temporal to things eternal. There are many
persons who bury themselves in the mud like the Eel, drown their senses
in eating and drinking, or waste their precious time in sleep and
idleness;[150] utterly disregarding all serious reflection, devotional
elevation, holy rectitude, and spiritual enjoyment. Our Saviour, who
spake many things to the Jews in parables, says, “The kingdom of
heaven is like unto a net that was cast into the sea, and gathered
of every kind: which, when it was full, they drew to shore, and sat
down, and gathered the good into vessels, but cast the bad away.” This
was spoken to fishermen, who had been called from their employment
by our Lord, and to whom he said, “I will make you fishers of men.”
They had hitherto been laboring to catch fish, but hereafter they were
to catch men: thus their secular calling is turned into a spiritual
channel. The word σωγηνη is said to mean _a drag-net_, the particular
use of which is to drag fishes up from the bottom of the water. The
similitude between that occupation from which, and that employment to
which our Saviour called them, consists in these particulars:--the
sea in which they were now to fish is the world, the fishes they were
to catch are Jews and Gentiles, the net with which they were to catch
them is the Gospel, and they themselves were to be fishermen. Or
thus:--by the _net_ may be understood the Gospel; by the _sea_ into
which it is cast, the unconverted world; by _casting_ the net into the
sea, the preaching of the Gospel; by _those_ that cast the net into
the sea, ministers; by the _fishes_ enclosed, the hearers; by the net
_gathering of every kind_ of fishes, profane persons as well as sincere
Christians; by the net being _full_ and _drawn to shore_, a set time
coming when the Gospel shall have fulfilled that for which it was sent,
the mystery of God being finished; by the _good_ being _gathered into
vessels_ as valuable and precious, and the _bad cast away_ as vile and
contemptible, that separation which shall be made at the final close of
time between merely nominal and real Christians, casting the former
into hell, and bringing the latter to heaven.
This parabolical method of conveying important instruction, by which
heavenly things are represented and set forth by expressions borrowed
from earthly things which are familiar to us, was very ancient, as
appears from Jotham’s parable, and much in use among the Jews. It
engaged the attention, because it was pleasant; it assisted the
memory, which is apt to retain what is conveyed in this form; it
excited inquiry after the meaning of what was thereby intended: and,
consequently, was likely to be rendered beneficial to the hearers.
Father Quesnel remarks, The net of God’s word, animated by his Spirit,
draws souls out of the abyss of sin and error, to Christian faith and
piety. The net and vessel of the visible church receives both the good
and bad fishes, true Christians and hypocrites. This is neither the
time, nor the place of distinction; all must continue mixed together
till the great day of separation. A man’s being in the church will not
infallibly assure him of salvation: as yet there is time to become
such as we ought to be. But the moment will come, when all desires and
endeavors to this purpose will be attended only with despair. And who
knows but this moment may be just at hand. Our faith is very weak if
we can think of being separated from the righteous without shuddering.
Our love of salvation is very faint, if we do not endeavor earnestly to
separate ourselves in this world from the wicked, by the holiness of
our lives and conversation.
* * * * *
_Section_ II.--ON FOWLS.
Number of Species -- Superiority and peculiar Construction
-- Skill in building their Nests -- Power and season of
Propagation -- Dexterity in providing Food -- Instinct --
Migrations -- Insects -- Religious Improvement.
Not any part of nature is destitute of inhabitants. The woods, the
waters, the depths of the earth, have their respective tenants; while
the transparent and elastic air, and those regions where man can never
soar, but with much art and at considerable risk, are occupied with
the most beautiful creatures. Every order of animals is fitted for
its situation in life; but none more apparently so than birds. Though
inferior to beasts in the scale of nature, yet they hold the next rank,
and far surpass fishes and insects, both in the structure of their
bodies, and in their sagacity.
The number of species in this order of animals is very numerous,
amounting to above eight hundred. As some degree of classification
appears necessary, they have therefore been arranged into eight orders.
The 1st is the _Struthious_, or Ostrich order, or those which never
rise from the earth. This includes the Ostrich, the Cassowary, the
Dodo, the Solitary, and the Nazarene. The 2d is the _Rapacious_ order.
This includes the Eagle, the Condor, the Vulture, the Falcon, the
Shrike, or Butcher-Bird, and the Owl. The 3d is the _Gallinaceous_, or
Poultry order, which is without both the talons and the hooked bill of
the rapacious kind. This includes the Bustard, the Cock, the Turkey,
the Pintada, or Guinea-Hen, the Grous, the Peacock, the Pheasant, the
Curassow, the Partridge, and the Quail. The 4th is what some authors
have termed the _Columbine_ order. This includes the Dove, or Pigeon,
with its varieties. The 5th is the order of _Pies_. This includes the
Crow, the Roller, the King-Fisher, the Cuckoo, the Wood-Pecker, the
Oriole, the Nuthatch, the Bee-Eater, the Wryneck, the Creeper, the
Hornbill, the Parrot, the Ani, the Wattle Bird, the Grackel, the Bird
of Paradise, the Beef-Eater, the Curucui, the Barbets, the Jacamer,
the Tody, and the Humming Bird. The 6th is the _Passerine_, or Sparrow
kind. This includes the Starling, the Thrush, the Chatterers, the
Grosbeaks, the Bunting, the Finch, the Fly-Catchers, the Lark, the
Wagtail, the Warblers,[151] the Titmouse, the Swallow, the Goatsucker,
the Coly, the Tanager, and the Manakins. The 7th is the _Cloven-footed_
Water-Fowl, including those with pinnated feet. This includes the
Heron, the Ibis, the Curlow, the Snipe, the Sandpiper, the Plover, the
Oyster-Catcher, the Pratincole, the Rail, the Gallinule, the Boatbill,
the Umbre, the Jacana, the Sheathbill; and with pinnated, or finned
feet, the Phalarope, the Coot, and the Grebe. And the 8th is the
_Web-footed_ Water-Fowl. This includes the Avoset, the Courier, the
Flamingo, the Auk, the Guillemot, the Diver, the Tern, the Petrels, the
Gull, the Mersanger, the Duck, the Pelican, the Albatross, the Skimmer,
the Penguin, the Tropic Bird, and the Darter. These eight orders take
in the several species belonging to each, some of which are very
numerous; the Duck genus alone embraces one hundred species, differing
much both in size and plumage. Thus we see in birds also, that God has
shown his wisdom and his power, in the gradation from the vast Ostrich,
and Cassowary, to the Humming-Bird, which, in size is not much larger
than the Bee.
“The _ourissia_, bee-like in its size,
_Humming_ from flower to flower delighted flies,
And in a wondrous living rainbow drest,
Shifts all its colors on its wings and breast.”
Of all animated beings, this little bird is the most elegant in form,
and superb in colors. The emerald, the ruby, and the topaz, sparkle in
its plumage, which is never soiled by the dust of the ground. In Mr.
Bullock’s Museum, Piccadilly, there is a case containing more than one
hundred _Humming-birds_; and in the “Companion” to this delightfull
repository of natural history, an interesting account is given of this
little creature, that flutters from flower to flower, breathes their
freshness, wantons on the wings of the cooling zephyrs, sips the nectar
of a thousand sweets, and resides in climes where reigns the beauty of
eternal spring.
The legs, the wings, the bones, even all parts of their bodies,
are much lighter, firmer, and more compact in birds than in other
animals. Their lungs are extended over all the cavities of their
bodies. Carniverous birds, like carniverous quadrupeds, have but one
stomach, where their food is moistened or swelled; a gizzard, which
is a very hard muscle, almost cartilaginous, and which they commonly
fill with small stones, where the food is afterwards ground, in order
to facilitate its complete digestion. In birds there is no ruminating:
but in such as are not carniverous, the food is immediately swallowed
into the crop, or anti-stomach (which is observed in many, especially
piscivorous birds,) where it is moistened by some proper juice, and
then transferred to the gizzard, by the working of whose muscles,
assisted by small pebbles, swallowed for that purpose, it is ground
small, and so transmitted to the intestines.
Birds we find supplied with a corney substance, instead of teeth
and lips. Their bills are cut into various shapes, adapted to their
different habits. The sharp edge and tempered point of the Sparrow’s
beak, enables it to pick every seed from its concealment; breaking the
grain to obtain the kernel. The hooked beak of the Hawk separates, like
a dissector’s knife, the flesh from the bones of the animals on which
it preys. The spoon-bill of the Goose enables her to graze, and collect
food from the bottoms of the pools. Birds of the Crane kind, which seek
their food among the waters, having no web-feet, are supplied with long
legs for wading, or long bills for groping, and usually both: these are
admirably adapted to the shallow pools of water, or sides of rivers,
which they frequent. But in birds living by suction, they are serrated,
or tooth-like; these do not serve the purpose of teeth, but act as a
sieve, or strainer, separating nicely from mud some nutriment conducive
to the preservation of life.
The sense of seeing in birds is remarkably acute; and though their want
of external ears is supplied by only two small orifices or ear-holes,
yet they do not appear deficient in hearing. The scent of some species
is exquisitely delicate. Men who attend decoys where ducks are caught,
generally keep a piece of turf lighted, on which they breathe, lest the
fowls should smell them and fly away. The voice of birds is much louder
in proportion to their size, than that of other animals; for in fact,
the bellowing of an Ox is not heard at a much greater distance than the
scream of a Peacock.
The covering of birds is perhaps one of the most beautiful. Their
feathers are light, smooth, and warm, inclining backward, downy at the
stem, overlapping at their tips, beautifully variegated, and forming
a raiment, varying in circumstances, so as always to suit the habits
of the bird. The construction of a single feather is “a mechanical
wonder.” We see at the stem, a tough, light, pliant, and elastic
material, only found in feathers; also the pith, which feeds the
feathers, a substance peculiar to that purpose; likewise the beard,
which grows on each side of the stem, and is stripped off when making
pens, the separate threads of which are called filaments, or rays.
These appear stronger when pressed perpendicularly to their plane, than
when rubbed either up or down in the line of the stem; and this arises
from the laminæ, of which these beards are composed, being flat, and
placed with their flat sides towards each other. Hence, though they are
easily made to approximate each other, yet they require more force in a
contrary direction, having to encounter the impulse of the air, which
requires more strength. We find also, that these threads, in their
natural state, unite; and cannot, be parted without force, although
not joined by any glutinous adhesion, but by a mechanical contrivance.
And, if separated by force or accident, when brought together they
immediately reclasp, resuming their former smoothness. These threads
are interlaced with each other, by means of a vast number of fibres,
or teeth, which they protrude on each side; fifty of these have been
counted in 1-20th of an inch: they are curved after a different manner
from the filaments on which they grow. Those which proceed from the
side toward the beginning of the quill-end, are shorter, firmer, and
turn upward. Those on the side toward the extremity of the feather, are
longer, more flexible, and bent downward. They therefore act thus; when
the two laminæ are pressed together, so that the long fibres are forced
far enough over the short ones, their crooked parts fall into the
cavity made by the crooked parts of the others, just as a latch enters
the cavity of a catch on the door post. All this beautiful structure
may be seen by the microscope. In the Ostrich, whose feathers, or other
filaments, hang loose like down, this mechanism is wanting. But as this
bird does not fly, and requires assistance only in running, perhaps
this formation is best adapted for that purpose. Small birds, which do
not migrate in the winter season, have the inner side of their feathers
black, because this is the warmest color: hence the heat of the bird is
prevented from escaping.
The feathers of birds appear to be nourished and preserved in a
remarkable manner; especially those that much frequent waters, for
they have a larger supply of oily substance, with which to trim them.
Lest the feathers should be injured by exposure to the air, every bird
is furnished with a gland situated on the rump, containing a proper
quantity of oil, which it presses out with its beak, and with which it
occasionally anoints them. In water fowls, this oil is so plentiful,
that it even imparts a degree of rancidity to the flesh; and by it,
their plumy coat is rendered completely waterproof.
As God made the fowls “that they might fly in the firmament of heaven,”
so has he adapted the form of their bodies, and the structure and
disposition of their plumage, for that very purpose. The head and neck
in flying, are drawn principally within the breastbone, so that the
whole underpart exhibits the appearance of a ship’s hull. The wings are
used as sails, or rather oars, and the tail as a helm or rudder. By
means of these, the creature is not only able to preserve the centre
of gravity, but also to accelerate its speed through the air, either
straight forward, circularly in any kind of angle, as well as upward or
downward. Though the greatest part of the aërial creation are adorned
with feathers, yet has the Deity enabled several to fly without them;
such as the Bat, one species of Lizard, two sorts of fishes, and
numberless kinds of insects.
The skill with which birds erect their houses, and adjust their
apartments, is inimitable. The caution with which they conceal them
from the searching eye, or intruding hand, is admirable. They fix
their nests on the pliant branches that wave aloft in the air, or are
suspended over the flowing stream: by these means the vernal gales rock
their cradle, and the murmuring waters lull their young; while both
concur to terrify their enemies, and have a tendency to prohibit their
approach. Some hide their downy offspring from view, amidst the shelter
of entangled furze. Others, with wary solicitude, place them in the
centre of a thorny thicket. And thus, by a variety of expedients, they
are generally as secure, as if intrenched behind an impregnable mound.
“Some to the holly-hedge
Nestling repair, and to the thicket some;
Some to the rude protection of the thorn
Commit their feeble offspring: the cleft tree
Offers its kind concealment to a few,
Their food its insects, and its moss their nests.
Others apart, far in the grassy dale,
Or roughening waste, their humble texture weave.
But most in woodland solitudes delight,
In unfrequented glooms, or shaggy banks,
Steep, and divided by a babbling brook,
Whose murmurs soothe them all the live-long day,
When by kind duty fixed. Among the roots
Of hazel, pendent o’er the plaintive stream,
They frame the first foundation of their domes;
Dry sprigs of trees, in artful fabric laid,
And bound with clay together. Now ’tis nought
But restless hurry through the busy air,
Beat by unnumbered wings. The Swallow sweeps
The slimy pool, to build his hanging house
Intent. And often, from the careless back
Of herds and flocks, a thousand tugging bills
Pluck hair and wool; and oft, when unobserved,
Steal from the barn a straw: till soft and warm
Clean and complete, their habitation grows.”
If the Swan has large sweeping wings, and a copious stock of feathers,
to spread over his callow young; the Wren supplies by contrivance
what is wanting in her bulk. Though small, she has to nurse a very
numerous issue; therefore with surprising sagacity designs, and with
wonderful diligence finishes her nest, being a neat oval, bottomed
and vaulted over with a regular concave, within made soft with down,
without thatched with moss, and having only a small aperture left for
her entrance.
“It wins my admiration,
To view the structure of that little work,
_A bird’s nest_. Mark it well within, without.
No tool had he that wrought, no knife to cut,
No nail to fix, no bodkin to insert,
No glue to join: his little beak was all,
And yet how neatly finished!”
By this means, the animating heat of her body is greatly increased
during the time of incubation. And her young no sooner burst the shell,
than they find themselves screened from the annoyance of weather, and
comfortably reposed, till they gather sufficient strength and plumage
in their warm recess, to make their first essay into the wide expanse.
As to the succession of this class of animals, some are endued with
a remarkable power of propagating, while others are confined within
narrow limits. In general, the least animals, and those which are
useful and serve for nourishment to the greatest number of other
animals, are the most prolific. The Hawk kind generally lay not more
than two eggs, or at most four; while the Poultry species produce from
50 to 100. The Diver, or Loon, which is eaten by a few animals, lays
also two eggs; but the Duck kind, the Moorgame, Partridges, &c, and
small birds, lay a very great number. If we suppose two pigeons to
hatch nine times a year, they may produce in four years 14,760 young!
Birds generate in that particular season which supplies them with a
stock of provisions, sufficient, not only for themselves, but for their
increasing families. They hatch their young when new-born insects swarm
on every side. So that the caterer, whether it be the male or female
parent, needs only alight on the ground, or make a short excursion into
the air, to find a repast ready dressed for the tender charge at home.
The love they have for their offspring, while helpless, is invincibly
strong.[152] They nurse them with the greatest care, caress them with
affectionate notes, put food into their mouths, cherish and keep them
warm, teach them to pick, eat, and gather food: whereas, the moment
they are able to provide for themselves, this anxious care vanishes
as though it had never been. The Hen, while catering for her little
brood, would fly at a mastiff in their defence: yet, in a few weeks,
leaves them to their own protection, not regarding them any more than
others of the same species.
They also provide their food with admirable art, which dexterity they
bring into the world with them. Some birds, though not aquatic, live
on fish: and must necessarily find it more difficult to seize their
prey than Water-fowl. From whence do they derive this natural instinct?
They stand on the brink of the liquid element, and when a shoal of
fish comes (which they can discover at a distance,) they pursue them,
skim along the surface, suddenly dive into the water, and carry off a
fish.[153] Who gave the birds of prey their piercing sight, undaunted
courage, and the destructive weapons, without which they could not
possibly subsist? Who points out to the Stork the place where she
may find frogs[154] and insects for her support? In order to procure
these, she must seek them not only in meadows, but also in the furrows
of fields; and continue her search till the approach of morning, when
the other birds awake and begin to quit their places of retreat. What
amazing strength must the Condor have, seeing it can carry away a
sheep, a deer, and even prey on the ox itself! How can we reconcile
that maternal instinct which causes the quail to adopt little birds
of every species, which she not only takes under her protection, but
bestows on them her tenderest cares! What cunning does the Crow use
to secure the prey, which she cannot devour at once? She hides it in
places such as other Crows do not frequent, and when hungry again, how
well does she know where she has deposited it![155]
There are also several birds, which, when food begins to fail, hide
themselves in the earth, or in caves, in a torpid state, during
the winter. We are assured, at least, that before the approach of
this season, the Strand-Swallows conceal themselves in the earth;
the Wall-Swallows repair to the holes of trees and old buildings;
and the House, or Common Swallows seek for ponds, where they fasten
themselves in pairs, cling to roots or weeds, continue without motion,
and apparently without life, till the return of spring, when they are
re-animated, and return from that state of torpidity.
The infinitely wise Creator has given different instincts to birds;
none of which is superfluous, or useless, but each is indispensably
necessary to the preservation and well-being of the animal. The motion
of birds not only requires strength and well-formed pliant limbs, but
also instinct to direct their movements. They have each two feet; but
their bodies do not rest perpendicularly on them, for they project
both before and behind; and yet a chick will stand upright and run
about almost as soon as it leaves the shell. Young Ducks, just hatched
by a Hen, know their own element, and swim about in the water without
example or instruction. Other birds know how to rise up from their
nests into the air, balance themselves, pursue their course, make
equal strokes with their wings in true time, stretch out their feet
to equipoise their bodies, use their tails like an oar or rudder, to
direct their flight, and make long journeys from their native country
to unknown regions.