- Of the Beard of a wilde Oat
This Beard of a wild Oat, is a body of a very curious structure, though to the naked Eye it appears very slight, and inconsiderable, it being only a small black or brown Beard or Bristle, which grows out of the side of the inner Husk that covers the Grain of a wild Oat; the whole length of it, when put in Water, so that it may extend it self to its full length, is not above an Inch and a half, and for the most part somewhat shorter, but when the Grain is ripe, and very dry, which is usualy in the Moneths of July, and August, this Beard is bent somewhat below the middle, namely, about 2/5 from the bottom of it, almost to a right Angle, and the under part of it is wreath'd lik a With; the substance of it is very brittle when dry, and it will very easily be broken from the husk on which it grows. - Of the Seeds of Tyme
These pretty fruits here represented, in the 18. Scheme, are nothing else, but nine several seeds of Tyme; they are all of them in differing posture, both as to the eye and the light; nor are they all of them exactly of the same shape, there being a great variety both in the bulk and figure of each seed; but they all agreed in this, that being look'd on with a Microscope, they each of them exactly resembled a Lemmon or Orange dry'd; and this both in shape and colour. Some of them are a little rounder, of the shape of an Orange, as A and B, they have each of them a very conspicuous part by which they were join'd to their little stalk, and one of them had a little piece of stalk remaining on; the opposite side of the seed, you may perceive very plainly by the Figure, is very copped and prominent, as is very usual in Lemmons; which prominencies are express'd in D, E and F. They seem'd each of them a little creas'd or wrinckled, but E was very conspicuously furrow'd, as if the inward make of this seed had been somewhat like that of a Lemmon also, but upon dividing several seeds with a very sharp Pen-knife, and examining them afterward, I found their make to be in nothing but bulk differing from that of Peas, that is, to have a pretty thick coat, and all the rest an indifferent white pulp, which seem'd very close; so that it seems Nature does not very much alter her method in the manner of inclosing and preserving the vital Principle in the seed, in these very small grains, from that of Beans, Peas, &c. - Of the Seeds of Poppy
The small seeds of Poppy, which are described in the 19. Scheme, both for their smalness, multiplicity and prettiness, as also for their admirable soporifick quality, deserve to be taken notice of among the other microscopical seeds of Vegetables: For first, though they grow in a Case or Hive oftentimes bigger then one of these Pictures of the microscopical appearance, yet are they for the most part so very little, that they exceed not the bulk of a small Nitt, being not above 1/32 part of an Inch in Diameter, whereas the Diameter of the Hive of them oftentimes exceeds two Inches, so that it is capable of containing near two hundred thousand, and so in all likelihood does contain a vast quantity, though perhaps not that number. Next, for their prettiness, they may be compar'd to any microscopical seed I have yet seen; for they are of a dark brownish red colour, curiously Honey-comb'd all over with a very pretty variety of Net-work, or a small kind of imbosment of very orderly rais'd ridges, the surface of them looking not unlike the inside of a Beev's stomack. But that which makes it most considerable of all, is, the medicinal virtues of it, which are such as are not afforded us by any Mineral preparation; and that is for the procuring of sleep, a thing as necessary to the well-being of a creature as his meat, and that which refreshes both the voluntary and rational faculties, which, whil'st this affection has seis'd the body, are for the most part unmov'd, and at rest. And, methinks, Nature does seem to hint some very notable virtue or excellency in this Plant from the curiosity it has bestow'd upon it. First, in its flower, it is of the highest scarlet-Dye, which is indeed the prime and chiefest colour, and has been in all Ages of the world most highly esteem'd: Next, it has as much curiosity shew'd also in the husk or case of the seed, as any one Plant I have yet met withall; and thirdly, the very seeds themselves, the Microscope discovers to be very curiously shap'd bodies; and lastly, Nature has taken such abundant care for the propagation of it, that one single seed grown into a Plant, is capable of bringing some hundred thousands of seeds. - scheme-20
The Seeds of Purslane seem of very notable shapes, appearing through the Microscope shap'd somewhat like a nautilus or Schem. 20.Porcelane shell, as may be seen in the XX. Scheme, it being a small body, coyl'd round in the manner of a Spiral, at the greater end whereof, which represents the mouth or orifice of the Shell, there is left a little white transparent substance, like a skin, represented by BBBB, which seems to have been the place whereunto the stem was join'd. The whole surface of this Coclea or Shell, is cover'd over with abundance of little prominencies or buttons very orderly rang'd into Spiral rows, the shape of each of which seem'd much to resemble a Wart upon a mans hand. The order, variety, and curiosity in the shape of this little seed, makes it a very pleasant object for the Microscope, one of them being cut asunder with a very sharp Penknife, discover'd this carved Casket to be of a brownish red, and somewhat transparent substance, and manifested the inside to be fill'd with a whitish green substance or pulp, the Bed wherein the seminal principle lies invelop'd. - Of Peacocks, Ducks, and other Feathers of changeable colours
The parts of the Feathers of this glorious Bird appear, through the Microscope, no less gaudy then do the whole Feathers; for, as to the naked eye 'tis evident that the stem or quill of each Feather in the tail sends out multitudes of Lateral branches, such as AB in the Schem. 22. Fig. 3.third Figure of the 22. Scheme represents a small part of about 1/32 part of an Inch long, and each of the lateral branches emit multitudes of little sprigs, threads or hairs on either side of them, such as CD, CD, CD, so each of those threads in the Microscope appears a large long body, consisting of a multitude of bright reflecting parts, whose Figure 'tis no easie matter to determine, as he that examines it shall find; for every new position of it to the light makes it perfectly seem of another form and shape, and nothing what it appear'd a little before; nay, it appear'd very differing ofttimes from so seemingly inconsiderable a circumstance, that the interposing of ones hand between the light and it, makes a very great change, and the opening or shutting a Casement and the like, very much diversifies the appearance. And though, by examining the form of it very many ways, which would be tedious here to enumerate, I suppose I have discover'd the true Figure of it, yet oftentimes, upon looking on it in another posture, I have almost thought my former observations deficient, though indeed, upon further examination, I have found even those also to confirm them. - Of the Eyes and Head of a Grey drone-Fly
I took a large grey Drone-Fly, that had a large head, but a small and slender body in proportion to it, and cutting off its head, I fix'd it with the forepart or face upwards upon my Object Plate (this I made choice of rather then the head of a great blue Fly, because my enquiry being now about the eyes, I found this Fly to have, first the biggest clusters of eyes in proportion to his head, of any small kind of Fly that I have yet seen, it being somewhat inclining towards the make of the large Dragon-Flies. Next, because there is a greater variety in the knobs or balls of each cluster, then is of any small Fly.) Then examining it according to my usual manner, by varying the degrees of light, and altering its position to each kinde of light, I drew that representation of it which is delineated in the 24. Scheme, and found these things to be as plain and evident, as notable and pleasant. - Scorpions and Spiders
... this the conformity or congruity of many other parts common to either of them, will strongly argue, their crustaceous armour, their number of leggs, which are six, beside the two great claws, which answer to the wings in Insects; and in all kind of Spiders, as also in many other Insects that want wings, we shall find the compleat number of them, and not onely the number, but the very shape, figure, joints, and claws of Lobsters and Crabs, as is evident in Scorpions and Spiders, as is visible Schem. 31. - Of the Water-Insect or Gnat
Of the Water-Insect or Gnat. This little creature, described in the first Figure of the 27. Scheme, was a small scaled or crusted Animal, which I have often observ'd to be generated in Rain-water; I have also observ'd it both in Pond and River-water. It is suppos'd by some, to deduce its first original from the putrifaction of Rain-water, in which, if it have stood any time open to the air, you shall seldom miss, all the Summer long, of store of them frisking too and fro. 'Tis a creature, wholly differing in shape from any I ever observ'd; nor is its motion less strange: It has a very large head, in proportion to its body, all covered with a shell, like other testaceous Animals, but it differs in this, that it has, up and down several parts of it, several tufts of hairs, or brisles, plac'd in the order express'd in the Figure; It has two horns, which seem'd almost like the horns of an Oxe, inverted, and, as neer as I could guess, were hollow, with tufts of brisles, likewise at the top; these horns they could move easily this or that way, and might, perchance, be their nostrils. It has a pretty large mouth, which seem'd contriv'd much like those of Crabs and Lobsters, by which, I have often observ'd them to feed on water, or some imperceptible nutritive substance in it. - Flea
The strength and beauty of this small creature, had it no other relation at all to man, would deserve a description. For its strength, the Microscope is able to make no greater discoveries of it then the naked eye, but onely the curious contrivance of its leggs and joints, for the exerting that strength, is very plainly manifested, such as no other creature, I have yet observ'd, has any thing like it; for the joints of it are so adapted, that he can, as 'twere, fold them short one within another, and suddenly stretch, or spring them out to their whole length, that is, of the fore-leggs, the part A, of the Scheme, lies within B, and B within C, parallel to, or side by side each other; but the parts of the two next, lie quite contrary, that is, D without E, and E without F, but parallel also; but the parts of the hinder leggs, G, H and I, bend one within another, like the parts of a double jointed Ruler, or like the foot, legg and thigh of a man; these six leggs he clitches up altogether, and when he leaps, springs them all out, and thereby exerts his whole strength at once.