Section 72. On Instinct⁠

The⁠ following most curious instance of a change of instinct is mentioned by Darwin. The bees carried⁠ over to⁠ Barbadoes and the Western Isles ceased⁠ to lay up any honey after the first year, as⁠ they found it not useful to them. They found the weather so fine, and the materials⁠ for making honey so plentiful, that they quitted⁠ their grave, prudent⁠, and mercantile⁠ character, became exceedingly profligate and debauched⁠, ate⁠ up their capital, resolved to work no more, and⁠ amused themselves by flying about the sugar-houses and stinging the blacks. The⁠ fact is, that⁠, by⁠ putting animals in different situations⁠, you may⁠ change, and even reverse, any of their original propensities. Spallanzani⁠ brought⁠ up an eagle upon⁠ bread and milk, and fed a dove on⁠ raw beef.—Rev. S. Smith.

Über den tierischen Instinkt.

This clause requires a different rendering; let us say ‘Darwin gives the following most (höchst) curious example of a change of the animal instinct’. The last noun requires the def. art., as explained in S. 3, N. 2.

to carry over, hinü´berbringen. The Perfect Participle qualifies the noun ‘bees’. According to S. 7, N. 3, the words ‘carried — Isles’ may be rendered either by the attributive construction or by forming of them a relative clause. I venture to propose the use of the attributive construction as the more elegant of the two modes of rendering, and more especially in order to avoid a repetition of subordinate clauses.

When the preposition ‘to’, in connection with a verb denoting motion, stands before the names of countries, towns, islands, etc., it must be rendered by ‘nach’.

Here follow the words ‘after — year’, to lay up honey, einen Vorrat von Honig an´sammeln.

See S. 41, N. 6; it = this; not useful, nicht mehr von Nutzen.

materials — plentiful, Materialien zur Honigbereitung in solchem Überflusse vorhanden.

auf´geben.

prudent = cautious.

merkantilisch.

unmäßig.

to eat up, auf´zehren.

und sich daran ergötzten. For rendering the passage ‘by — blacks’ see S. 1, N. 3. To fly about, umschwär´men, v. tr.

The — is, Es ist eine ausgemachte Thatsache.

Here follows the subject ‘you’ (comp. S. 66, N. 15), which translate by the impers. pron. man.

by — animals, durch Versetzung der Tiere, i.e. by a removal of the animals. In = into; different = other.

Here follows the object and its attributes, ‘their original (angeboren) propensities (Trieb, m.)’.

may = can; reverse, in entgegengesetzte Richtungen leiten.

Lazaro Spallanzani, berühmter italienischer Anatom und Naturforscher, geb. 1729, † 1799.

to bring up, groß ziehen.

bei.

mit.