eir composition.

CAROLINE.

I had no idea that milk was such an interesting compound. In many
respects there appears to me to be a very striking analogy between milk
and the contents of an egg, both in respect to their nature and their
use. They are, each of them, composed of the various substances
necessary for the nourishment of the young animal, and equally destined
for that purpose.

MRS. B.

There is, however, a very essential difference. The young animal is
formed, as well as nourished, by the contents of the egg-shell; whilst
milk serves as nutriment to the suckling, only after it is born.

There are several peculiar animal substances which do not enter into the
general enumeration of animal compounds, and which, however, deserve to
be mentioned.

_Spermaceti_ is of this class; it is a kind of oily substance obtained
from the head of the whale, which, however, must undergo a certain
preparation before it is in a fit state to be made into candles. It is
not much more combustible than tallow, but it is pleasanter to burn, as
it is less fusible and less greasy.

_Ambergris_ is another peculiar substance derived from a species of
whale. It is, however, seldom obtained from the animal itself, but is
generally found floating on the surface of the sea.

_Wax_, you know, is a concrete oil, the peculiar product of the bee,
part of the constituents of which may probably be derived from flowers,
but so prepared by the organs of the bee, and so mixed with its own
substance, as to be decidedly an animal product. Bees' wax is naturally
of a yellow colour, but it is bleached by long exposure to the
atmosphere, or may be instantaneously whitened by the oxy-muriatic acid.
The combustion of wax is far more perfect than that of tallow, and
consequently produces a greater quantity of light and heat.

_Lac_ is a substance very similar to wax in the manner of its formation;
it is the product of an insect, which collects its ingredients from
flowers, apparently for the purpose of protecting its eggs from injury.
It is formed into cells, fabricated with as much skill as those of the
honey-comb, but differently arranged. The principal use of lac is in the
manufacture of sealing-wax, and in making varnishes and lacquers.

_Musk_, _civet_, and _castor_, are other particular productions, from
different species of quadrupeds. The two first are very powerful
perfumes; the latter has a nauseous smell and taste, and is only used