CHAPTER IV 



THE CICADA: HIS MUSIC 



T>Y his own confession, Reaumur never 

 -■-' heard the Cicada sing; he never saw fhe 

 insect ahve. It reached him from the coun- 

 try round Avignon preserved in spirits and 

 a goodly supply of sugar. These conditions 

 were enough to enable the anatomist to give 

 an exact description of the organ of sound; 

 nor did the master fail to do so : his pene- 

 trating eye clearly discerned the construction 

 of the strange musical-box, so much so that 

 his treatise upon it has become the fountain- 

 head for any one who wants to say a few 

 words about the Cicada's song. 



With him the harvest was gathered; it 

 but remains to glean a few ears which the 

 disciple hopes to make into a sheaf. I have 

 more than enough of what Reaumur lacked : 

 I hear rather more of these deafening 

 symphonists than I could wish; and so I shall 

 perhaps obtain a little fresh light on a sub- 



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