CHAPTER VII 



THE PSYCHES 



A WELL-DRESSED CATERPILLAR 



IN the springtime, those who have eyes to see may 

 find a surprise on old walls and dusty roads. 

 Certain tiny faggots, for no apparent reason, set 

 themselves in motion and make their way along by 

 sudden jerks. The lifeless comes to life : the immovable 

 moves. This is indeed amazing. If we look closer, 

 however, we shall solve the riddle. 



Enclosed within the moving bundle is a fair-sized 

 Caterpillar, prettily striped with black and white. He 

 is seeking for food, and perhaps for some spot where 

 he can turn into a Moth. He hurries along timidly, 

 dressed in a queer garment of twigs, which completely 

 covers the whole of him except his head and the front 

 part of his body, with its six short legs. At the least 

 alarm he disappears entirely into his case, and does not 

 budge again. This is the secret of the walking bundle 

 of sticks. It is a Faggot Caterpillar, belonging to the 

 group known as the Psyches. 



[89] 



