developement of certain organs pre-existing in the embrio." I beg that this eftimable paftor would maturely reflect on the fubject, before he publishes fo ftrange a conjecture, and which fo direaly fhocks all that we know most certainly of the internal and external organization of bees.-The weight, however, of the evidence afterwards offered by M. Schirach, appears nearly to have effected M. Bonnet's converfion. At length,' fays he, in a letter addreffed to Mr. S. in 1771, I have before me the details necellary to establish my faith. They have diffipated the greater part of my doubts; at leaft the most effential, It is impoffible for me to fufpect that you could have been impofed upon by any of thofe little circumftances, which have fometimes mifled the moft able obfervers. Befide, in your experiments you have taken fuch care; you have extended your precautions fo far; and you have repeated and varied your trials fo often; that, in fpite of the most inve terate incredulity, I cannot think of any objection, founded even on the shadow of a reafon, that can be made to your conclufions from them.'-The Reader will eafily conceive how much M. Schirach mutt have been flattered by fuch an acknowledgment from fo diftinguished a naturalift and philofopher as M. Bonnet; the intimate friend too of Reaumur, but ftill more the friend of truth. We have already incidentally anticipated another remarkable difcovery made by the members of this Bee-Academy. In a Memoir contained in this work, M. Hattorff relates feveral curious experiments, from which he deduced this fingular propofition; that the queen bee of a hive lays eggs, which produce young, without having had any communication with the drones. We fhall not enter into any detail of them, as the truth of this propofition feems to us to be ftill more unexceptionably evinced by the experiments of M. Schirach; from the perufal of which it appears that his artificial queens, formed, or reared, in a community confifting only of working bees, proceed almost immediately to lay eggs, and to people the hive; and that too at a time of the year, as appears to us, when there are no drones in being. It is no fmall teftimony likewife, in favour of this doctrine, that it meets with the countenance, and even concurrence, of M. Bonnet +. A few + The Tranflator gives us, in a note, the fubftance of a letter, which he had received from M. Schirach, on this fubject; from which it appears that, in the fpring of 1771, he began a course of experiments in order to ascertain this fact; and that tho' he had been interrupted by a continuance of bad weather, he had already [July 18.] produced two generations of bees, the iffue of a virgin queen; and had A few years ago fuch a propofition would probably have been rejected, even by the moft candid naturalifts, as pregnant with abfurdity, and as implying a flagrant violation of the established laws of nature. The late wonderful phenomena, however, with which we have been prefented, relating to the polype, and the fnail, and ftill more the parallel, or at least analogous cafe of the aphides, pucerons, or vine-fretters, will perhaps be fufficient to render the prolific quality of a virgin queen bee, an idea not totally inadmiffible among the prefent race of naturalifts. In proportion as their knowledge has been extended by experience, that faithful guide has pointed out to them what a limited view we poffefs of nature, and how ill qualified we are to set bounds to her operations. The philofophical naturalift therefore will not now haftily reject a new doctrine, merely because it is extraordinary, or because it directly contradicts certain pretended laws of nature, promulgated by his too confident and fhort fighted predeceffors: though at the fame time he will not haftily or implicitly adopt it, till the facts on which it is founded are ftill further, and more accurately, afcertained by repeated and diverfified experiments. The propriety of fuch conduct cannot perhaps be more appofitely exemplified and enforced, than by a reference to the contents of one of the laft articles of this volume; which is a Memoir of M. Bonnet's, in which he gives a fhort account of fome obfervations and experiments ftill more recent than those above-mentioned, and which furnish refults different from those of M. Schirach. The Author of thefe obfervations is M. Riem, an apothecary, and member of an Oeconomical Society, eftablished under the patronage of the Elector Palatine, at Lauter in the Palatinate, and formed on the model of the Lufatian Academy. His experiments tend to prove that the common working bees were not originally, or while in the worm ftate, merely females in fieri; but that, in the bee state, they actually lay eggs, in the boxes in which they have been confined, and which have neither contained a queen bee or a fingle drone, But for the fhort and fomewhat imperfect account here given of his obfervations, we muft refer the curious Reader to the work itfelf; which we could wish to fee tranflated into our language, as it contains many particulars highly deferving the notice of the fpeculative naturalift, as well as of those who cultivate bees, either for profit or amufement. had no doubt that he should by that time have been in poffeffion of a third and fourth generation, produced in the fame manner, had not the intemperance of the feafon disturbed the experiment; which he proposes to continue, in order to put the matter out of doubt. See Review for February laft, p. 116. ART, ART. XII. Voyage D'Espagne, fait en l'Anné 1755; avec des Notes biftoriques, geographiques et critiques; et un Table raisonnée des Tableaux et autres Peintures de Madrid, de l'Efcurial, de Saint-Ildefonfe, &c. Par le P. De Livey, Barnabite.-A Tour in Spain, in the Year 1755; tranflated from the Italian. 12mo. 2 Vols. Paris. 1772. AFTER fome late publications concerning Spain, this per formance will afford but little entertainment to moft of our Readers, unless they fhould happen to have a tafte for painting. The collections in Spain feem to be very noble; and our Author, in the ufual manner of an Italian, has paid his principal attention to them. There are, however, now and then, fome obfervations on cuftoms and manners, which are deferving of notice. Such we think are the following: • Haughtiness is a vice which prevails in Spain among the lowest people, and even among the beggars. A ftranger fhould, thefore, be liberal of the words Senor and Senora, Don and Donna. I was once fo punished for my inadvertence in this refpect, that I refolved to be profuse of them for the future, and to bestow them on muliteers and fcullions. An account of the following adventure will give you an idea of Spanish rhodomontade. I was amusing myself with looking over a book, at a bookfeller's fhop, when a beggar came and asked me to give him fomething; but in fuch a manner that he feemed to demand what was his due, rather than to beg for charity. At first I pretended not to fee him, and went on reading. He grew more importunate from my filence; and faid, I might read at my leifure, and that, at that time, I ought to attend to what he faid to me. As I continued not to regard him, he approached with an infolent air, and faid, either answer, or give me fomething. Seeing I did not attend to his clamours, he took me by the arm -you have neither charity nor good manners. I then loft my patience, and turned towards him to reprove his effrontery. The impudent rogue ftopped me, and faid in a grave and foftened tone, Gently; pardon me, Sir! you do not know me? I told him, I did not. We have, however, replied he, lived in the fame capital, where I was fecretary to an embaffy. He then told me his name, and his country, which was a province of Spain.' The Author relates the ftory of the beggar at length; and fays, that Spain abounds with fuch orators in rags; and that the little money you give them is well laid out, for the pleasure of feeing their manner, and hearing their discourse. ART. ART. XIII. Fables, ou Allegories Philofophiques.-Fables, or Philofophical Allegories. 8vo. Paris. 1772. IN N the preliminary difcourfe to these Fables, which are said to be written by M. Dorat, many proper encomiums are paffed upon the celebrated La Fontaine, the unrivalled mafter of the French fable. The Author calls him a fabulift from inftinct. The filk-worm, fays he, fpins, the bee makes honey, and Fontaine made fables. The writer who is fo juft to the reputation of others, ought to have his own fet in as fair a light as poffible; and we know not how to do this in a more effectual manner than by giving one of his fables as a specimen of the rest; accompanied with a tranflation. FABLE XVI. L'ESCARGOT et la CIGALE. Vers l'ombre épaifle d'un buiffon, Le gite avoifine la plaine; Mais quand on eft chargé tout chemin paroît long. Il s'arrête au lieu d'avancer; L'aiguille d'un cadran marche, à peu-près, de même. Mais combien j'envierois le fort de la chanteufe! Après une feul enjambée Trop heureux Escargot, difoit l'autre, à son tour, Tu ne crains fous tes toits, fous ta maison rampante, Notre |