The Sacred Beetle and Others 



The work has progressed. The crater 

 has become deeper; its thick lips have dis- 

 appeared, are thinner, closer together, 

 drawn out into the neck of a pear. The 

 object, however, has not changed its place. 

 Its position and direction are exactly as I 

 noted them before. The side that rested 

 on the ground is still at the bottom, at the 

 same point; the side that faced upwards is 

 still at the top; the crater that lay on my 

 right has been replaced by the neck, still on 

 my right. All of which gives conclusive 

 proof of my earlier statements: there is no 

 rolling, but only pressure, which kneads and 

 shapes. 



The next day, a third visit. The pear is 

 finished. Its neck, yesterday a yawning 

 sack, is now closed. The egg, therefore, is 

 laid; the work is completed and demands 

 only the finishing touches of general polish- 

 ing, touches upon which the mother, so intent 

 on geometrical perfection, was doubtless 

 engaged at the time when I disturbed her. 



The most delicate part of the business 

 escapes my observation. Roughly speaking, 

 I can see plainly how the egg's hatching- 

 chamber is obtained: the thick pad surround- 

 ing the original crater is thinned and flattened 

 ii6 



