78 BEETLE CAGES. 



From June to August of the last summer, instead of a pair 

 we kept a trio of these pretty beetles, which, as regularly as night 

 approached, were in the habit of betaking themselves to rest. 

 On introducing a fourth into the basket, we found that the new- 

 caught stranger, refusing to associate on the first night with 

 his more domesticated associates, remained at the top instead 

 of retiring to the bottom of his prison-house. By the arrival 

 of a second night, you might have supposed the restless in- 

 truder somewhat reconciled to captivity, and ready to go to rest 

 quietly with his fellows; but not a bit of it he had only com- 

 municated to them his own sitting-up propensity. Another 

 had accompanied him to the top, and, owing, as it seemed, 

 entirely to this "evil communication," our little prisoners 

 adandoned for a time their "good manners/' and, as long as 

 the \\arm weather lasted,, were as often found, after sunset, out 

 of their beds as in them. 



Now if any of our fair friends should feel disposed to try for 

 themselves the keeping of some of these "loves among the 

 roses" they may lodge them, if they please, in a style of appro- 

 priate elegance. In the stead of a basket let them be provided 

 with a round closely-wired cage, high enough to contain in its 

 centre a branch of roses, and wide enough to admit of a sur- 

 rounding bed of light earth or sand. An ornamental cage, 

 thus furnished with fresh roses, and tenanted by insects which 

 in resplendency of metallic lustre almost match the humming- 

 bird, would be no disgrace we take it to the window of a 



