royal apartments, the nurseries, magazines of provisions, arched chambers, and galleries, with their various communications, sloping staircases, and bridges.

The economy of these industrious insects is extremely curious. There are three distinct ranks or orders among them, denominated, 1st, the labourers, or working insects; 2d, the soldiers, or fighting class; and 3d, the nobility, which are the winged or perfect insects, and from which alone the kings and queens are chosen. The working insects are most numerous, being in proportion of 100 to 1 of the soldiers.

But perhaps the most wonderful, and at the same time the best authenticated, part of the history of these singular insects, is that which relates to the queen, or mother of the community. During her pregnancy, an extraordinary change takes place in her person, or rather in her abdomen only. It gradually increases, and at length becomes of such enormous size as to exceed the bulk of the rest of her body 1,500 or 2,000 times. She becomes 1,000 times heavier than her consort, and exceeds 20,000 or 30,000 times the bulk of one of the labourers. In this state 80,000 eggs are protruded in 24 hours.

Many curious particulars are related of the devastations committed by this powerful community, which construct roads, or rather covered ways, diverging in all directions from the nest, and leading to every object of plunder within their reach. They destroy dead trees and various other substances; and such is their efficiency and despatch, that they will accomplish the entire destruction of a deserted town in two or three years, leaving no vestige of a house.

These insects are found also in India. At Bombay, Mr. Forbes observes, they are so numerous and destructive, that it is difficult to guard against their depredations: in a few hours they will demolish a large chest of books, papers, silk, or clothes, perforating them with a thousand holes. The inhabitants dare not leave a box on the floor without placing it on glass bottles, which, if kept free from dust, they cannot ascend. But this is trifling when compared with the serious mischief which they sometimes occasion, penetrating the beams of a house, or destroying the timbers of a ship.

THE BOA CONSTRICTOR.

The Boa Constrictor is the largest of serpents. It is from 20 to 40 feet in length, and sometimes, according to some travellers, much more, and is compared to the mast of a ship in size. It is capable of swallowing deer, goats, buffaloes, and men, entire. It crushes its prey to death by embracing it in the wreaths of its body. By thus crushing the bones, it is able to reduce a buffalo to such à soft state as to be swallowed whole, after having covered it with saliva or spittle.

It suspends itself from the branches of trees by its prehensile tail, and in this manner is prepared to drop upon any animal passing beneath. Sometimes it fixes itself by the tail to a tree, and suffers its body to float in the stream at those places where oxen and other animals come to drink, which it then seizes in its fatal embrace.

Whether we consider its vast power of swallowing, the enormous crushing force which it can exert when twisted round its prey, its courage, its locomotive powers, being capable of climbing trees and suspending itself from the branches, or entering rivers, lakes, and the sea, and swimming with great celerity, we have reason to regard it as one of the most formidable monsters of the tropical regions. To attack it when in an active state would be madness; but when gorged with blood it is easily overcome. It has no poisonous fangs, and therefore inspires less dread than some of the venomous serpents.

THE OSTRICH.

The ostrich is accounted the largest of birds. It sometimes weighs from 80 to 100 pounds, and is from seven to nine feet in height from the top of its head to the ground, and eight feet long from the beak to the tail. When walking, it seems as tall as a man on horseback. It is incapable of flying, but runs with great celerity.

It is found chiefly in Africa, seldom more than 35 degrees distant from the equator. It is valued for its beautiful plumage, and its feathers form a considerable article of trade. It is tamed and bred on account of its feathers, and also for its flesh and eggs, which are used for food. One of the eggs is said to be equal to 30 of those of a hen.

The ostrich is of amazing strength, and will carry a man upon its back with ease, though it is so stupid and untractable that it cannot be directed at the will of its rider. The voracity of the ostrich exceeds that of any animal. It will devour whatever it meets with, stones, wood, iron, or leather, as readily as grain or fruit.

Adanson thus speaks of two ostriches which he saw at a village near the Senegal. "They were so tame that two little blacks mounted both together on the back of the largest no sooner did he feel their weight than he began to run as fast as he could, till he carried them several times round the village.

"To try their strength, I made a full-grown negro mount the smallest, and two others the largest. This burden did not seem to me at all disproportioned to their strength. At first they went at a pretty high trot, and when they were heated a little, they expanded their wings as if it were to catch the wind, and they moved with such fleetness that they seemed to be off the ground. The ostrich moves like a partridge, and I am satisfied that those I am speaking of would have distanced the swiftest race horses that were ever bred in England.”

THE LION.

The lion abounds most in the interior parts of Africa, where he exercises his reign over the inferior animals : he is also a native of the hottest parts of Asia.

A lion of the largest size is four or five feet in height, and measures eight or nine feet from the nose to the origin of the tail, which last is itself about four feet long. The form and gait of this striking quadruped are bold and majestic. His head is large, his ears rounded, his eyebrows ample, his eye-balls round and fiery, and glowing, on the least irritation, with peculiar lustre.

His chest is shaggy, his tail bushy at the extremity, and a yellowish brown mane, nearly two feet long, flows on the side of his head and neck. His predominant colour is pale-tawney, with a lighter shade, approaching to white, on the flanks and belly. The structure of his frame, and his astonishing movements, bespeak a singular combination of bones, nerves, and muscles, destined to act with wonderful effect in pursuing and destroying the animals on which he feeds.

Notwithstanding his portly dimensions, he is so far from appearing clumsy or unwieldy, that he may justly be regarded as a model of strength and activity. When provoked, he erects his mane, darts fire from his eye-balls, contracts the muscles of his cheeks and forehead into hideous wrinkles, shows his formidable teeth, and exhibits a spectacle of savage grandeur, which beggars description. As he puts his mouth to the ground when he roars, the sound is equally propagated to a considerable distance on all sides, so that it is impossible to discover the precise spot whence it issues. This circumstance increasing the alarm, the intimidated animals fly backwards and forwards; and, in the dark, they often run to the very place from which the noise proceeds, and which they are so anxious to avoid.

The habitation of the lion is usually in the thickest part of the forest; and he is seldom seen by day, as too much light is apt to incommode him; but, on the approach of night, he quits his den, and prowls about for prey, roaring hideously, and terrifying most of the animals within his hearing. A single stroke of his paw will break a horse's neck; the sweep of his tail will throw a strong man on the ground; and he can carry off, with apparent ease, an ox or a buffalo, when lightened of its entrails.

He does not openly attack any animal, unless provoked, or oppressed with hunger: but, in the latter case, he is said to fear no danger, and to be repelled by no resistance. A single lion in the desert has been known to attack a whole caravan; and if, after a violent and obstinate conflict, he found himself weakened, he would retreat fighting, and still presenting his front to the enemy. But when acquainted with man, and the power of his resources, he loses his natural fortitude, and is so conscious of his inferiority, that, in populous districts, he has been seen to fly before women and children.

His usual method of taking his prey is to spring or throw himself on it, with one vast bound, from the place of his concealment: if, however, he miss his aim, he seldom attempts another spring at the same object, but deliberately returns to the thicket in which he lay in ambush. When he seizes his victim, he knocks it down, and seldom bites till he inflicts the mortal blow, which he

generally accompanies with a tremendous roar. He seems to prefer the flesh of a Hottentot to that of a European, probably because the former is not encumbered with clothes. The horse, next to the Hottentot, is reputed his favourite prey; and the elephant and camel are both highly relished.

The flesh of this animal is often eaten by the negroes. His skin which was formerly a robe of distinction for heroes, is now used by the Africans as a mantle or a bed.

Many anecdotes have been related indicative of the noble, generous, and grateful dispositions of this king of beasts. When in a state of confinement, many lions have manifested much docility, affection, and mildness; but the utmost care and attention of the keepers have failed in subduing the natural fierceness of others.

SOUTH AFRICA.

The principal native tribes in South Africa are the Hottentots and the Caffres.

HOTTENTOTS. See Plate, No. 93.

The Hottentots are divided into three classes; the Hottentots of the colony of the Cape; the Bosjesmans, or wild Hottentots, and the Namaquas.

Persons.

The persons of the Hottentots are not devoid of sym metry, but their face is, in general, extremely ugly. Their cheek bones are prominent, their chin narrow and pointed, the nose extremely flat, the lips thinner than those of the negroes and Caffres, and the teeth beautifully white. The eyes are of a deep chesnut colour, long and narrow. Their complexion is a yellowish brown, resembling that of a faded leaf.

Their hair grows in a singular manner, rising in small tufts, at certain distances from each other, and when kept short, appears like a hard shoe-brush, with this difference, that it is curled and twisted into round lumps. When suffered to grow, it hangs in twisted tassels like fringe.—