Pyrethrum

“ A very bold and strong growing species, belonging to a numerous genus; it comes to us from Hungary, and has been grown more or less in English gardens a little over sixty years. It is a distinct species, its large flowers, the height to which it grows, and the strength of its willow-like stalks being its chief characteristics. Still, to anyone with but a slight knowledge of hardy plants, it asserts itself at once as a Pyrethrum. It is hardy, herbaceous, and perennial, and worth growing in every garden where there is room for large growing subjects. ”

“ And the latter:—“That element, also, which is so destructive to matter, produces certain animals; for in the copper-smelting furnaces of Cyprus, in the very midst of the fire, there is to be seen, flying about, a four-footed animal with wings, the size of a large fly: this creature, called the ‘pyrallis,’ and by some the ‘pyrausta.’ So long as it remains in the fire it will live, but if it comes out, and flies a little distance from it, it will instantly die.” ”

“ The Micro-lepidoptera are divided into five main groups—Pyralides, Pterophori, Crambi, Tortrices, and Tineæ, each of [Pg 291] which is divided into families and genera, as we have seen in the case of the 'Macros.'
Pyralides
The Pyralides may be easily distinguished by the proportionately long fore wings, long legs, and elongated abdomen. Some of them have wings of a pearly lustre, and are accordingly known popularly as the 'Pearls.' Some species fly in bright sunshine, others appear on the wing before sunset, and fly till dusk; others, again, are purely nocturnal in their habits. ”

“ The larvæ of the fireflies crawled slowly but happily over the fungus-covered mountainside, and great glow-worms clambered upon the shining tops of the toadstools and rested there, twin broad bands of bluish fire burning brightly within their translucent bodies.
They were the females of the firefly race, which never attain to legs and wings, but crawl always upon the earth, merely enlarged creatures in the forms of their own larvæ. Moths soared overhead with mighty, throbbing wing-beats, and all the world seemed a paradise through which no evil creatures roamed in search of prey. ”

“ The wood of a certain kind of Egyptian fig-tree sinks in water, and does not float like other wood; and, stranger still, when it has been sunk to the bottom for some time, it rises again to the surface, though nature requires that when soaked in water it should be heavier than ever. Then there are the apples of Sodom which grow indeed to an appearance of ripeness, but, when you touch them with hand or tooth, the peal cracks, and they crumble into dust and ashes. The Persian stone pyrites burns the hand when it is tightly held in it and so gets its name from fire. ”

“ These spoils being carried about and shown among the ranks, the Romans were transported with joy, and shouted aloud; while equal discouragement and terror prevailed among the Greeks, until Pyrrhus, understanding what had happened, rode about the army with his face bare, stretching out his hand to his soldiers, and telling them aloud it was he. At last, the elephants more particularly began to distress the Romans, whose horses, before they came near, not enduring them, went back with their riders ”

“ It might be called the Indian-summer shrub. The clethra buds, too, have decidedly expanded there, showing leaflets, but very small. Some of the new pyrus leaves are nearly full-grown. Would not this be a pretty device on some hale and cheery old man's shield, the swamp pyrus unfolding its leaves again in the fall? Every plant enjoys some preëminence, and this is its: the most forward to respond to the warmer season. How much spring there is in it! Its sap is most easily liquefied. It takes the least sun to thaw and develop it. ”

“ Decius Mus, the commander opposed to Pyrrhus, was the grandson of his namesake referred to above; and now it was rumored among the Greeks that he intended, as soon as the armies came into action, to make the destruction of his enemies sure by sacrificing himself, as his grandfather had done. The soldiers of Pyrrhus were willing to meet any of the ordinary and natural chances and hazards of war; but, where the awful and irresistible decrees of the spiritual world were to be against them, it is not strange that they dreaded the encounter. ”

“ The darkness of the night added to the horror of all, so that they durst not venture of themselves to carry over the child and the women that attended it; but, perceiving some of the country people on the other side, they desired them to assist their passage, and showed them Pyrrhus, calling out aloud, and importuning them. ”

“ The larval or grub stage is passed on the ground beneath grass, weeds and rubbish where they often prey upon other insects. In some cases the grubs may be able to produce light though as a rule the luminous grub-like creature or glow-worm is a wingless adult firefly. [76]
Observations and Studies
Firefly beetles on sour-dock leaf.
Lower surface of firefly beetle enlarged to show the light producing segments of the abdomen.
Watch for the first appearance of the fireflies in the evening and see where they come from. Do they all appear at once or only a few at first? Do they fly fast? ”

“ PYRIFORM. (Pyrum, a pear; forma, shape.) Shaped like a pear, i. e. large and rounding at one end, and gradually tapering at the other. Ex. Pyrula, fig. 390.
PYRGO. Defr. A genus of microscopic Foraminifera.
PYRGOMA. Auct. (Πυργος, pyrgus, a tower.) Order, Sessile Cirripedes, Lam.—Descr. Composed of a single conical, hollow paries, with a small aperture closed by an operculum of four valves, and supported upon a cup-shaped base.—Obs. The genera into which Leach has divided this genus are Pyrgoma, Adna, and Megatrema ”

“ Pyrrhus replied, that all these things were but idle talk, full of uncertainty, and only fit to amuse the vulgar; their thought, with their swords in their hands, should always be
The one good omen is king Pyrrhus' cause,
and so got up, and drew out his army to the walls by break of day. The Lacedaemonians, in resolution and courage, made a defense even beyond their power; the women were all by, helping them to arms, and bringing bread and drink to those that desired it, and taking care of the wounded. ”

“ The elephants succeeded in getting round the chariots which had been posted to intercept them, and effected a great destruction of the Roman troops. On the other hand, a detachment of the Roman army made their way to the camp of Pyrrhus, and attacked it desperately. Pyrrhus withdrew a part of his forces to protect his camp, and that turned the tide against him on the field. By means of the most Herculean exertions, Pyrrhus rallied his men, and restored their confidence ”

“ Long feelers hang down from the tree-tops, and orchids and ferns grow profusely, high up among the branches. Everything possesses a brilliancy and size and vitality which has in it something fearful; indeed, it is as if it were an evil power brooding over everything and crushing weaker things in a relentless grasp. The spider-webs are like gauze handkerchiefs spread over the banks, in the centre of which are gaping doorways, where you see the monster spider sprawling with an insolent, will-you-walk-into-my-parlour air. ”

“ If there be any luminous insect that eclipses the Pyrophorus it must be the great lantern-fly—also of South America—provided only that the great lantern-fly is luminous. That is a most essential point, and it does not appear yet to have been satisfactorily made out. The principal evidence on the affirmative side is that of Madame Merian, who was right about the Mygale—the great bird-killing spider—and who here speaks as an actual eye-witness. ”

“ And then Pierrots, Pierrots everywhere, of every conceivable motley and shape. Blue Pierrots and yellow Pierrots! white or black, purple with orange frills, and orange with purple frills, black skull caps and tall white peaks. Pierrots of satin, and Pierrots of gingham! Cool and active! Ye gods! how active! Bohemian smartness, it seems, demanded that its Pierrots should be bright and amusing and active.
From his point of vantage on the floor of the hall Peter scanned the semicircle of boxes where sat more puppets, hundreds of them, watching the thousands down below. ”

“ The Romans were at war with the Tarentines, who, not being able to go on with the war, nor yet, through the foolhardiness and the viciousness of their popular speakers, to come to terms and give it up, proposed now to make Pyrrhus their general, and engage him in it, as of all the neighboring kings the most at leisure, and the most skillful as a commander. The more grave and discreet citizens opposing these counsels, were partly overborne by the noise and violence of the multitude ”

“ Where Pyrrhus himself fought was the hottest of the action, and many of the Spartans did gallantly, but in particular one Phyllius signalized himself, made the best resistance, and killed most assailants; and when he found himself ready to sink with the many wounds he had received, retiring a little out of his place behind another, he fell down among his fellow-soldiers, that the enemy might not carry off his body. The fight ended with the day, and Pyrrhus, in his sleep, dreamed that he threw thunderbolts upon Lacedaemon, and set it all on fire, and rejoiced at the sight ”

“ The middle claw is about equal to hind claw; not longer, as in Pinicola.
Pyrrhula cassini.
49955
The genus Pyrrhula is an Old World one; extending across from the Atlantic to the Pacific, six or eight species or varieties being recognized by naturalists. All have the back ash-colored; the wings and tail, with top of head, lustrous black; the under parts ash, generally with vermilion on the cheeks and chin, sometimes extending over the whole under surface; the rump and crissum white: the females similar, but lacking the vermilion. ”

“ I must observe another Thing, that the Pyrates generally shift their Rovings, according to the Season of the Year; in the Summer they cruise mostly along the Coast of the Continent of America, but the Winters there, being a little too cold for them, they follow the Sun, and go towards the Islands, at the approach of cold Weather. Every Man who has used the West-India Trade, knows this to be true ”

“ Two elephants and many of his rear-guard perished. Pyrrhus himself was at the head of the column of march, but at once rode to the rear and restored the fight, but was in great danger from the brave and warlike Mamertines. He received a blow upon his head from a sword, which forced him to retire a little way from the battle, and greatly elated the enemy. One of them, a powerful man, splendidly armed, ran forward far beyond the rest, and boastfully challenged him to come forward and fight, if he were alive. ”

“ They killed two of his elephants, and cut off many separate detachments of men, and finally deranged all his plans, and threw his whole army into confusion. Pyrrhus at length determined to force his enemies to battle. Accordingly, as soon as a favorable opportunity occurred, he pushed forward at the head of a strong force, and attacked the Mamertines in a sudden and most impetuous manner. ”

“ The spider often spreads its web right across between two trees, the thread extending from the very top of the tree to the ground, while the insect springs up again in an instant from the earth, and travels aloft by the self-same thread, thus mounting at the same moment and spinning its threads. When its prey falls into its net, how on the alert it is, and with what readiness it runs to seize it! ”

“ The insect paused upon "Don Pierrot's" movement, when the white Don curiously ventured to touch him with a paw. Upon that the insect reared its tail, according to its habit, and rushed towards him as with headstrong ferocity ”

“ Arrived before the city, he found that there was an army opposed to him there, under the command of a general named Antigonus. His army was encamped upon a hill near the city, awaiting his arrival. The mind of Pyrrhus had become so chafed and irritated by the opposition which he had encountered, and the defeats, disappointments, and mortifications which he had endured, that he was full of rage and fury, and seemed to manifest the temper of a wild beast rather than that of a man. ”

“ At length, after a long and very obstinate conflict, the Greeks gained the victory. This result was due in the end, in a great measure, to the elephants which Pyrrhus brought into the battle. The Roman horses, being wholly unused to the sight of such huge beasts, were terrified beyond measure at the spectacle, and fled in dismay whenever they saw the monsters coming. In fact, in some cases, the riders lost all command of their horses, and the troop turned and fled, bearing down and overwhelming the ranks of their friends behind them. In the end the Romans were wholly driven from the field. ”

“ In the dead of the night, Pyrrhus, approaching the walls, and finding the gate called Diamperes set open for them by Aristeas, was undiscovered long enough to allow all his Gauls to enter and take possession of the marketplace. But the gate being too low to let in the elephants, they were obliged to take down the towers which they carried on their backs, and put them on again in the dark and in disorder, so that time being lost, the city took the alarm, and the people ran, some to Aspis the chief citadel, and others to other places of defense, and sent away to Antigonus to assist them. ”

“ Therefore I say, if the Men of War take the same Track, the Pyrates must unavoidably fall into their Mouths, or be frighted away, for where the Game is, there will the Vermin be; if the latter should be the Case, the trading Ships, as I said before, will pass unmolested and safe, and the Pyrates be reduced to take Refuge in some of their lurking Holes about the uninhabited Islands, where their Fate would be like that of the Fox in his Den, if they should venture out, they would be hunted and taken, and if they stay within they must starve. ”