erable, as to the
main end of this Instrument, for the drawing in, and holding the sting in
the flesh; for the point being very sharp, the top of the Sting or Dagger
(ab) is very easily thrust into an Animal's body, which being once entred,
the Bee, by endeavouring to pull it into the sheath, draws (by reason of
the crooks (vxy) and (xyzz) which lay hold of the skin on either side) the
top of the sheath (tsrv) into the skin after it, and the crooks t, s, and
r, v, being entred, when the Bee endeavours to thrust out the top of the
sting out of the sheath again, they lay hold of the skin on either side,
and do not onely keep the sheath from sliding back, but helps the top
inwards, and thus, by an alternate and successive retracting and emitting
of the Sting in and out of the sheath, the little enraged creature by
degrees makes his revengfull weapon pierce the toughest and thickest Hides
of his enemies, in so much that some few of these stout and resolute
soldiers with these little engines, do often put to flight a huge masty
Bear, one of their deadly enemies, and thereby shew the world how much more
considerable in Warr a few skilfull Engineers and resolute soldiers
politickly order'd, that know how to manage such engines, are, then a vast
unweildy rude force, that confides in, and acts onely by, its strength. But
(to proceed) that he thus gets in his Sting into the skin, I conjecture,
because, when I have observ'd this creature living, I have found it to move
the Sting thus, to and fro, and thereby also, perhaps, does, as 'twere,
pump or force out the poisonous liquor, and make it hang at the end of the
sheath about b in a drop. The crooks, I suppose also to be the cause why
these angry creatures, hastily removing themselves from their revenge, do
often leave these weapons behind them, sheath'd, as 'twere, in the flesh,
and, by that means, cause the painfull symptoms to be greater, and more
lasting, which are very probably caus'd, partly by the piercing and tearing
of the skin by the Sting, but chiefly by the corrosive and poisonous liquor
that is by this Syringe-pipe convey'd among the sensitive parts thereof and
thereby more easily gnaws and corrodes those tender _fibres_: As I have
shewed in the description of a Nettle and of Cowhage.

* * * * *

Observ. XXXV. _Of the contexture and shape of the particles of _Feathers_._

Examining several sorts of _Feathers_, I took notice of these pa