Enobarbus

“ Who could have been back of Dumnorix when he blundered so evidently?"
Ahenobarbus felt that it was hardly possible Lentulus would condemn his plot very severely; but he replied diplomatically:—
"One has always plenty of enemies."
"Mehercle! of course," laughed the consul-elect, "what would life be without the pleasure of revenge! But why does my niece keep us waiting? Jupiter, what can she want of us?"
"Uncle, Lucius, I am here." And before them, standing illumined in the panel of sunlight, stood Cornelia. Ahenobarbus had never seen her so beautiful before. ”

“ Ahenobarbus had done many things which a far laxer code of ethics than that of to-day would frown upon; but, as said, he had never committed murder—at least had only had crucified those luckless slaves, who did not count. He roused with a start, as from a dream. What if Pratinas were wrong? What if there were really gods, and furies, and punishments for the wicked after death? And then came the other side of the shield: a great fortune his; all his debts paid off; unlimited chances for self-enjoyment; last, but not least, Cornelia his. ”

“ Like the sheat-fishes, the Barbels are fond of grubbing in the mud, for the purpose of getting at the worms, grubs, and larvæ of aquatic insects that are always to be found in such places. The Barbels are rather long in proportion to their depth, a peculiarity which, owing to the length of the head, is rather exaggerated in this species.
The Long-headed Barbel is extremely common in Palestine, and may be taken with the very simplest kind of net. Indeed, in some places, the fish are so numerous that a common sack answers nearly as well as a net. ”

“ Barbigerum has pseudo-bulbs less than an inch high, and its flowers are proportionate. But charm and size are no way akin. Fascination dwells in the lip, which, hanging upon the slenderest possible connection, lengthens out to the semblance of a brush. Thus exquisitely poised it rocks without ceasing, and its long, silky, purple-brown hairs wave softly but steadily all day long, as if on the back of a moving insect. Pretty though it be, all declare it uncanny.
The species was introduced from Sierra Leone by Messrs. ”

“ The fourth character, "vertebræ with elongated centra and aborted neural spines," is not a good distinguishing character, since Amphibamus, an undoubted microsaurian, possesses the same vertebral characters. "Ribs slender, and barbed like those of fishes" is a character which is common to several widely distinct genera. All Microsauria possess long, slender ribs, and the barbed condition is one which is possessed by only a few, Thyrsidium, Ophiderpeton, etc., the so-called "barb" being merely a highly exaggerated tuberculum. ”

“ Who among you does not know the barbet with its big round head, full of good will, its large drooping ears, short legs, squat body, long, fine and curly hair, almost like wool, which has given it the name of sheep dog? When half-shorn, as it is in the summer, it is still more comely. The hind quarters are naked and show the rosy skin; the fore part of the body is covered with a thick mane as white as cotton wool. A coquettish tuft finishes off the tail, elegant ruffles adorn the legs, the muzzle bears a mustache and small beard, which latter perhaps accounts for its name of barbet. ”

“ When the weapon is flung, the barb alone sinks into the creature’s flesh, the staff coming unloosed from the iron, and the line rapidly unwinding from the bobwood, as the stricken creature dives in its agony and fear. ”

“ Their dorsal fin is armed with a remarkably strong and sharp spine, serving them as means of defence or attack, and with which they frequently cut the nets, or when incautiously handled, inflict severe wounds on their captors.
In size, the barbel rarely exceeds the length of three feet, and weighs from twelve to eighteen, or twenty-five pounds. Its most frequent places of abode are the sides of hollow banks, in calm and deep waters. ”

“ The barb does not suddenly appear like an inventive mutation, but it very slowly evolves as its usefulness is demonstrated in practice. The shaft is very rarely perforated at the base for the attachment of a line ”

“ The worm sheds its skin and becomes a chrysalis. There are very few in the entomological world to vie in sober beauty with the tender creature which, with its wing-cases laid in front of it like a wide-creased scarf and its fore-legs folded under its head, as when the full-grown Scarab counterfeits death, suggests the idea of a mummy maintained by its bandages in a sacerdotal pose. Semi-translucent and honey-yellow, it looks as though it were cut from a block of amber. ”

“ It settles amid ordure the creatures most highly-endowed with family qualities. True, from there it mounts, with a sudden flight, to the sublimities of the bird.
The little worm is hatched in about a week: a strange and paradoxical being. On its back, it has an enormous sugar-loaf hump, the weight of which drags it over and capsizes it each time it tries to stand on its legs and walk. At every moment, it staggers and falls under the burden of the hunch.
Unable to keep its hump upright, the grub of the Onthophagus lies down on its side and licks the cream of its cell all around it. ”

“ Unfortunately we cannot make our projectile either a stable or a cowshed."
"But at least," said Michel Ardan, "we might have brought an ass, nothing but a little ass, the courageous and patient animal old Silenus loved to exhibit. I am fond of those poor asses! They are the least favoured animals in creation. They are not only beaten during their lifetime, but are still beaten after their death!"
"What do you mean by that?" asked Barbicane.
"Why, don't they use his skin to make drums of?"
Barbicane and Nicholl could not help laughing at this absurd reflection. ”

“ They took off their oilskins and wet shoes, placing the latter near the flames where they soon began to steam prodigiously.
“Wish we had something to sit on,” lamented Nelson.
“That’s easy,” Bob answered. “Here’s this old 224 anvil over here. If we can get it to the fire it will do finely.”
After several minutes of the hardest sort of work they managed to edge it over to the forge. Then they sat down on it, very close together of necessity, and puffed and blew like a couple of porpoises.
“How long are we going to stay here?” asked Nelson, tossing another piece of wood on the flames. ”

“ I speak of Onthophagus Vacca. His nymph has on its forehead a thick horn, one only, bent backward; on its corselet it possesses a like horn, jutting forward. The two, approaching their tips, look like a sort of pincers. What does the insect lack in order to acquire, on a smaller scale, the eccentric ornament of the West-Indian Scarab? It lacks perseverance. It matures the appendage of the forehead and allows that of the corselet to perish atrophied. It succeeds no better than Onthophagus Taurus in its attempt to grow a pointed stake upon its chine ”

“ He provoked his adversary, who is none other than Captain Nicholl! They are fighting this morning in the wood of Skersnaw. I heard all the particulars from the mouth of Barbicane himself. If he is killed, then our scheme is at an end. We must prevent his duel; and one man alone has enough influence over Barbicane to stop him, and that man is Michel Ardan. ”

“ By contrast it seemed dark, but the air was of a wonderful transparency, and Barbara's eyes, opening wide in delicious awe, saw everything more distinctly than in the open. She whispered to the yellow birch, the paper birch, the beech, the maple, and the chestnut, each by name lovingly, as she slipped past their soaring trunks, knowing them by the texture and the features of their bark though their leaves hung far overhead. Her paddle dipped without noise, lest the mysteries of the forest conclave should be disturbed by her intrusion. ”

“ I have never known one of these barbs to break or come loose, so adept are the blacks in securing them. The point is about 6 inches long, and on the barbless end is tightly wound successive layers of fibrous bark, until its size is adjusted to the socket in the haft. Above the swathing of bark a strong line is made fast ”

“ The Onthophagus, when collecting for her grub, goes to work as though equipped with one of these tasters. She bores an exactly round hole into the piece which she is exploiting; she goes straight to the middle, where the material, not being exposed to the contact of the air, has kept more savoury and pliable. Here and here alone are gathered the armfuls which, gradually stowed away, kneaded and heaped up to the requisite extent, fill the sack to the top. ”

“ Fine hairs and bristles sometimes surround the mouth.
Genera: Enoplus, Dorylaimus, Enchelidium, and others.
The genus Enoplus is exclusively marine, living amongst Algae and Hydroids in shallow water and moving actively about, but never coiling into spirals. De Man [196] describes Enoplus brevis Bast. as being attacked by a plant parasite, probably a Bacterium, of a greenish colour, which infested the muscles and gave them a peculiar colour.
Numerous other species have been described by De Man from the coast of Holland. It is probable that some of them are the free stages of parasitic forms ”

“ They live in the hot regions of South America and feed upon Reptiles and Insects. The two principal species of this genus are the Razor-bill of Jamaica, and the Savannah Blackbird of America.
The Barbets owe their name to a number of straight hairs which they have upon their beak. They are massive in form, and their flight is heavy. They inhabit the warm countries of both continents, and feed upon fruits, berries and Insects. The best known of this genus is the Collared Barbet, with a distinct collar of white feathers about the throat. ”

“ The first seven segments of the abdomen have, both above and below, a four-sided facet, bristling with rough protuberances. This the grub can either expand or contract, making it stick out or lie flat at will. The upper facets consist of two excrescences separated by the mid-dorsal line; the lower ones have not this divided appearance. These are the organs of locomotion, the ambulacra. When the larva wishes to move forwards, it expands its hinder ambulacra, those on the back as well as those on the belly, and contracts its front ones. ”

“ I said. “Some day I shall catch me a rabbit.”
“I hope not, my dear. Rabbits are harmless and they can’t fight underground. We have no quarrel with rabbits, we dachshunds.”
“Then,” I said, “I’ll have to find a fox.”
“It will be a good while before you are big enough to bring a fox out of his hole,” said Mother. “Some day, though, you shall try it, perhaps. You have good digging paws, Fritz.”
“They—they’re awfully big,” I said.
“As they should be, my dear. They’re made for digging. Each one is a little shovel, or, rather, a hoe. When you go into a hole that isn’t big enough you begin to dig. ”

“ Barbour has described only one species, Eurypterus (Anthraconectes) nebraskensis. It is represented by a large number of individuals and undoubtedly as the beds are worked over a great many more specimens will be obtained. They are for the most part in good condition, though seemingly representing only the exuviæ. The individuals are small, averaging two inches in length, the largest not being even three inches long. Barbour figures and describes, but does not name a second form which he thinks may be a species different from E. nebraskensis. ”

“ You arise like an angel. Nobody has been your enemy; nobody has been your mistress. You arise and give the five minutes' intelligent explanation; bah! There is not a situation in life which does not need five minutes' intelligent explanation; but it does not get it."
It could now be seen that the old man Fullbil was simply aflame with a destructive reply, and even Bobbs paused under the spell of this anticipation of [160] a gigantic answering. The literary master began very deliberately.
"My good friend Bobbs," said he, "I see your nose gradually is turning red." ”

“ When the animal is struck the point leaves the shaft, unwinding a long woven coil with which the two are fastened together. The barbs prevent the point from tearing out of the flesh and the dangling shaft catches on the underbrush and serves to retard the animal’s flight. ”

“ Barbus.—Scales of small, moderate, or large size. Dorsal fin generally with the (third) longest simple ray ossified, enlarged, and frequently serrated; never, or only exceptionally, with more than nine branched rays, commencing opposite or nearly opposite to the root of the ventral fin. Eyes without adipose eyelid. Anal fin frequently very high. Mouth arched, without inner folds, inferior or anterior; lips without horny covering. Barbels short, four, two, or none. Anal scales not enlarged. ”

“ The burrow is ready. It is a cavity dug in soft earth, usually in sand, shallow, the size of one’s fist and communicating with the outside by a short channel just large enough for the passage of the ball. As soon as the provisions are safely housed, the Scarab shuts himself in by stopping up the entrance to his dwelling with rubbish reserved for the purpose in a corner. Once the door is closed, no sign outside betrays the banqueting-hall. And, now, welcome mirth and jollity! All is for the best in the best of all possible worlds! ”