Eight Years' Wanderings in Ceylon

Insects-Efforts of a Naturalist-Dogs Worried by Leeches-Tropical Diseases-Malaria-C

heat and moisture calls into existence myriads of creeping things, the offspring of the decay of vegetation. "Life" appears to emanate from "death"-t

death? What countless swarms of insects have risen from that one carcase!-creatures which never could have been brought into existence were it

red by Nature for its destruction. The white ant scans a lofty tree whose iron-like timber and giant stem would seem to mock at his puny efforts; but it is rotten

angements of Nature for preserving the world from plagues and diseases, which the

ountless impurities noxious to the human race, how great a plague would our benefactors themselves become were it not for the various classes of carnivorous insect

t interesting classes. In the common routine of daily life they are continually in his view, and even should he have no taste for the study of Nature and her productions, still one prevailing characteristic of the insect tribe must impress itself upon hi

e families Of starving children. Ail the arrangements of the insect tribe, though prompted by sheer instinct are conducted wi

ost upon her head, while with her bind legs she trundles a large ball; herself no bigger than a nutmeg, the ball is four times the size. There she goes along the smooth road. The ball she has just manufactured from some fresh-dropped horse-dung; it is as round as though turned by a lathe, and, although the dung has not lain an hour upon the ground, she and her confederates have portioned out the s

as though acted on by some subterranean force; gradua

s a bone; but this is not the case; she has formed a receptacle for her eggs, which she deposits in the ba

by these beetles. This is effected by the active process of rolling the lo

ate nest. This insect belongs to the order "Hymenoptera," and is of the Ichneumon

ttack the largest cockroach, who evinces the greatest terror at sight of his well-known enemy; bu

size of the hornet down to the minute tinsel-green fly, no bigger than a gnat; but ev

mason-flies as carrion will bring together "blow-flies." They will be then seen in excessive activity upon the wet earth, forming balls of mud, by rolling the e

ich it is built: it may be in the corner of a room, or in a hole in a wall, or in the hollow of a bamboo; but wherev

lay. This she dabs upon the plastic foundation, and continues the apparently rude operation until some twenty or thirty pills of clay are adhering at equal distances. She then forms these into a number of neat oval-sh

g is first laid; thus, as the egg itself is not vivified for some weeks after it is deposited, the spiders have to be p

faction of all dead animal substances; nevertheless these spiders are to be ke

themselves in the centre of their delicate nets, and they are hurried off in a panic to be converted into preserved provisions. Each cell being closed, the whole nest is cemented over

a gun well loaded with spiders, clay and grubs, some mason-fly having chosen the barrel for his location. A bunch of keys will in

ce of weight on his own side. His reason for choosing this in preference to other insects for a preserved store may

s; his length of limb, breadth of thorax and powerful jaws give him a most formidable appearance. There is another species of a large-sized spider who spins a web of about two and a half feet in diameter. This is composed of a strong, yellow, silk

he silk of the silkworm: several pairs of stockings and various articles were manufactured wit

rength is so great that it can be wound upon a card without the slightest care required in the operation. The texture is

entomologists, whether a difference in the food of the spider would affect the

hreading like distant lamps through the intricate branches and lighting up the dark recesses of the foliage, then rushing like a shower of sparks around the glittering boughs. Myriads of bright fire-flies

lume of light is a large white grub about two inches in length, This is a fat, sluggish an

o legible that a page may be read with case. I once tried the experiment of killing the grub, but the light was not extinguished with life, and by opening the tail, I squee

rkness and quietude and not a ripple disturbs the broad surface of the water. Then the prow of the advancing steamer cuts through the dreary waste of darkness and awakens into

lcules contained in the water; in the same manner a fish darting through the s

n of the fluid and especially adapted to that purpose. It is a common belief that the light of the glow-worm is used as a lamp of love to assist in nocturnal meetings, but there can be little

be engaged in pinning out some rare specimen, a thousand minute eye-flies will be dancing so close to his eyeballs that seeing is out of the question. These little creatures, which are no larger than pin's heads, are among the greatest plagues in some parts of the jungle; and what increases the anno

m spring out of his chair as though electrified. Watch how, regardless of the laws of buttons, he frantically tears his trowsers from his limbs; he has him! no he hasn't!-yes he has!-no-no, positively he cannot get

yet commenced to feed upon him; there are also several fine specimens of the large flat buffalo tick; three or four leeches are enjoying themselves on the juices of the natura

unt of inflammation in the wound which is perfectly surprising in so minute an insect. The bite of the small

eties of the leech: the small jungle leech, the common leech and the stone leech. The latter will frequently creep up the nostrils of a dog while he is drinking in a stream, and, unlike the other species, it does not drop off when satiated, but continues to live in the dog's nostril. I have known a leech of this kind to have lived more than two months in the nose of one of my h

to enter into the details of the entomology of Ceylon; I have simply mentioned a few of those insects most common to the

varieties of reptiles, the flying foxes, the gigantic crocodiles; the countless species of waterfowl, et hoc genus omne; but one very serious fact is apt t

ring the changes upon four first-class ailments-four scourges, which alternately ascend to the throne of pestilence and annually reduce the circle of our friends-

t there can be little doubt that, whatever is the origin of the disease, the same is the eleme

n; and although this opinion is not generally entertained by the faculty, the idea is so feasible, and so many ration

tagnant pools and excluded from a free circulation of air. In a tropical country, a residence in such a situation would

is the first step in favor of the argument. Therefore, whatever shall tend

but some of whom are barely discoverable even by the strongest magnifying power, it certainly leads to the inference, that if one drop of impure fl

pecies of animalcules. Thus all water and vegetable or animal matter, in a state of stagnation and decay, gives birth to insect life; likewise all substances of every denomination which are subj

distinguished by the most powerful lens, is it not rational to conclude that the smallest discernible to human intellige

habitants are naturally of a low and uncleanly class, the cases will be tenfold. Thus, filth is admitted to have at least the power of attracting dise

and by extra cleanliness and fumigations to endeavor to arrest its progress. The great purifier of Nature is a violent wind, which usually terminates an epidemic immediately; this would naturally carry before it all insect life with which the atmosphere might be impregnated, and the disease disappe

ties of the latter are caused by animalcules, and that the method used for purifying infected air are those most generally destructi

me a mass of vermin; even this does not protect him from the rapacity of ticks, mosquitoes, fleas and m

e same propensities exist, of which we have at present no conception. Thus, different infectious disorders might proceed from peculiar sp

Mauritus, where that terrible scourge, the c

ists in immense numbers, and is a grand destroyer of all insects. On this account it is seldom or never shot at, especially as it is a great comforter to all cattle, whose hides it ent

ds disappeared. Such a circumstance had never before occurr

d within the atmosphere until their numbers caused disease? All suppositions on such a subject must, however, remain in obscurity, as no proof can be adduced of their correctness. The time

e fact I can assure him that no matter how great the natural strength of his constitution, the repeated exposure to the intense heat of the sun, the unhealthy districts that he will visit, the n

en or twenty miles not a drop of water is to be obtained fit for an animal to drink; not a tree to throw a few yards of shade upon the parching ground; nothing but stunted, thorny jungles and sandy, barren p

neral rush takes place toward the cheering sight. The water is thicker than pea soup, a green scum floats through the thickened mass, and the temperature is upward of 130 Fahrenheit. All kinds of insects are swarming in the putrid fluid, and a saltish bitter adds to its nauseating flavor. I have seen the exhausted coolies spread their dirty cloths

, where the land is flat and sandy, the water is always brackish, ev

and one berry is said to be sufficient to cleanse a gallon of water. The method of using them is curious, although simple. The vessel which is intended to contain the water, which is generally an earthen chatty, is well rubbed in the inside with a berry until the la

vastly improved, and what was totally undrinkable before has been rendered fit for use; but it has at the best been only compar

dry sand of the river's bed; this they perform with the horny toes of their fore feet, and frequently work to a depth of three feet before they discover the liquid treasure beneath. This process of well-digging almost oversteps the boundaries of instinct and strongly, savors of