n9
quarters of an inch long. When this habitat

lion is properly prepared, the insect lines each of those spaces with rose leaves, rolled over each other, the bottom of each being formed by several circular pieces of these leaves, placed over each other till' it is of a sufficient thickness. The bee then deposits an egg at the bottom of each division, and, after leaving a proper quantity of a kind of honey, for the non rish meat of the young IV lien hatched., closes the top with a lid composed of the same materials as the base., and in the same manner finishes the whole series. This curious opt ration is mostly performed in autumn. The young bee passes its intermediate states in these retreats and seldom emerges till pretty late the following summer. These small in

sects, a[)pardntiy so feeble and harmless, have

been known, with the mu1titudeof these aper hires, to have done serious injury to the ma jestic oak.

Were 1 to mention every particularity in the history of those inter-resting insects, I should ex tend my letter to an unreasonable length; there fore, you must be satisfied with those leading feam tares that I have selected for your amusement, and pursue the curious enquiry by your own attentive observation, and the study of such

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