The Bluebottle: The Laying 



the wonders of entomology should sometimes 

 give us a hint of commonplace utility. 



The usual meat-safe is a sort of large cage 

 with a top and bottom of wood and four wire- 

 gauze sides. Hooks fixed into the top are used 

 whereby to hang pieces which we wish to pro- 

 tect from the Flies. Often, so as to employ 

 the space to the best advantage, these pieces 

 are simply laid on the floor on the cage. With 

 these arrangements, are we sure of warding 

 off the Fly and her vermin? 



Not at all. We may protect ourselves 

 against the Bluebottle, who is not much in- 

 clined to lay her eggs at a distance from the 

 meat; but there is still the Flesh-fly, who is 

 more venturesome and goes more briskly to 

 work and who will slip the grubs through a 

 hole in the meshes and drop them inside the 

 safe. Agile as they are and well able to crawl, 

 the worms will easily reach anything on the 

 floor; the only things secure from their at- 

 tacks will be the pieces hanging from the ceil- 

 ing. It is not in the nature of maggots to ex- 

 plore the heights, especially if this implies 

 climbing down a string in addition. 



People also use wire-gauze dish-covers. The 

 trellised dome protects the contents even less 

 than does the meat-safe. The Flesh-fly takes 



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