ge of reason.

What can be more curious than the nest of the tailor-bird--a selection
of tough leaves neatly sewn one over the other to form a waterproof
exterior to the comfortable little dwelling within? Where does the
needle and thread come from? The first is the delicate bill of the
bird itself, and the latter is the strong fibre of the bark of a tree,
with which the bird sews every leaf, lapping one over the other in the
same manner that slates are laid upon a roof.

Nevertheless this is simple instinct; the tailor-bird in the days of
Adam constructed her nest in a similar manner, which will be continued
without improvement till the end of time.

The grosbeak almost rivals the tailor-bird in the beautiful formation
of its nest. These birds build in company, twenty or thirty nests
being common upon one tree. Their apparent intention in the peculiar
construction of their nests is to avoid the attacks of snakes and
lizards. These nests are about two feet long, composed of beautifully
woven grass, shaped like an elongated pear. They are attached like
fruit to the extreme end of a stalk or branch, from which they wave to
and fro in the wind, as though hung out to dry. The bird enters at a
funnel-like aperture in the bottom, and by this arrangement the young
are effectually protected from reptiles.

All nests, whether of birds or insects, are particularly interesting,
as they explain the domestic habits of the occupants; but, however
wonderful the arrangement and the beauty of the work as exhibited among
birds, bees, wasps, etc., still it is the simple effect of instinct on
the principle that they never vary.

The white ant--that grand destroyer of all timber--always works under
cover; he builds as he progresses in his work of destruction, and runs
a long gallery of fine clay in the direction of his operations; beneath
this his devastation proceeds until he has penetrated to the interior
of the beam, the centre of which he entirely demolishes, leaving a thin
shell in the form of the original log encrusted over the exterior with
numerous galleries.

There is less interest in the habits of these destructive wretches than
in all other of the ant tribe; they build stupendous nests, it is true,
but their interior economy is less active and thrifty than that of many
other species of ants, among which there is a greater appearance of the
display of reasoning powers than in most animals of a superior class.

On a f