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INSTITUTE OF FRANCE

INSURANCE

LEPISMA, A SPRING-TAIL

tera,j all true bugs, plant-lice, seventeen-year locusts and others. Insects with four wings, constructed on two types—some with outer wings, thickened at the bases and thinner tips, which overlap on the back; others with wings of the same thickness throughout. Mouth-parts formed for sucking. The metamorphosis is incomplete. (See CHINCH-BUG, CICADA, ELECTRIC-LIGHT BUG etc.) Ill: Ortkoptera, grasshoppers;, crickets and others. Insects ..with four wings, * the outer pair being straight and not used for .flying ; the inner pair or flying wings are folded like the plaits of a fan. Mouth-parts formed for biting. Metamorphosis incomplete (See CRICKET, (J-RASS-HOPPER, KATYDID etc.) II: Cdonata, dragon-flies and others. Insects with four membranous wings finely netted with veins. Mouth-parts formed for biting. Metamorphosis incomplete. (See DRAGON-FLY.) I: Thysanura, spring-tails, bristle-tails and others. Insects without wings which undergo no metamorphosis. The larval form is retained by the adult. In some cases, in addition to the six legs belonging to all insects, there are rudimentary legs on the abdomen. They form a sort of connecting-link between the other inserts and the myriapods. Besides the insects mentioned above, the mayflies, stone flies, white ants, book lice, bird lice, thrips, scorpion flies and caddice flies each separately represent an order in the modern classification of insects.

Insects and Flowers. Insects are of the greatest value in that they practically create by cross-pollination our beautiful and fragrant blossoms and our most valuable varieties of fruit. In destroying injurious insects, however, little hesitation need be felt, for the honeybee alone is "practically sufficient for the work of cross-pollination of fruits and flowers." (Hodge.) While a few feed upon flower-petals, by far the greater number are attracted by the pollen or nectar, the nectaries being so placed that the insect will have to touch anthers and stigma in getting to its feast. Pollen clinging to the insect is brushed against ^ the stigma of a flower of the same kind visited by the carrier, clings to the stigma and is conveyed to the seed-cup, and the flower is fertilized. Insects that, in addition to the bees, are agents in cross-fertilization include wasps,

most butterflies and moths, certain bugs; flies and beetles.

See H^dge: Nature Study and Life; Corn-stock: A Manual for the Study of Insects and Insect Life; Belle S. Cragin: Our Insect Friends and Foes; Weed: Life Histories of American Insects; French: Butterflies and Moths of the Eastern United States; Holland: The Butterfly Book; Packard: Guide to the Study of Insects and Textbook of Entomology; Scudder: Everyday Butterflies] and Smith: Economic Entomology.

Institute of France, The. The principal philosophical and literary society of France, originally proposed by Richelieu, for which letters patent were issued in 1635 under the name of the Academic Franfaise. Later many new bureaus or departments we re added, as the Academy of Inscriptions and Belles-Lettres; the Academy of Sciences; and those of sculpture and painting, music and architecture, the later name of which is the Academie des Beaux Arts, At present the Institute is made up of five distinct academies, each having its own officers, meetings and p ublications. The A cademie Fran-gaise, whose origin has been stated, is the first. Its department is the French language and literature, and its ordinary members number 40. The Academie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres comes next, having 40 ordinary, 10 honorary and 100 corresponding members. The Academie des Sciences, which has 65 ordinary, 10 honorary, 8 foreign and 100 corresponding members, is third; and the Academie des Beaux Arts is fourth. This has 40 ordinary, 10 honorary, 10 foreign associate and 40 corresponding members. It distributes prizes. The Academie des Sciences Morales et Politiques is the last. This has 40 ordinary, 6 honorary, 6 foreign associate and 40 corresponding members. Salaries are attached to memberships. There is a fine library.

Insur'ance. The two chief kinds of insurance are that relating to property—fire and marine; and that relating to the person—life and accident. Under its contract (called the policy) the insuring company agrees, in case of property insurance, upon payment of an annual premium by the insured, to repay any loss sustained up to the amount of the insurance, unless the loss is deliberately caused by the insured. In life and accident insurance a fixed sum is paid to the person for whose benefit the insurance is taken out. Other losses and accidents against which insurance is issued, include: Plate glass fractures, steam boiler explosions, burglary and damage to crops by hail or tornadoes. Insurance companies also, for an agreed premium, go upon the bonds of employes and insure titles to property.

An interesting form of insurance is that against sickness and unemployment of which the Lloyd-George (q. v.) measure passed in 1911 is a striking example. To the unemploy-