The Sacred Beetle and Others 



birds, which develop within a chalky en- 

 closure that does not alter in size. Both of 

 them dilate, with this difference that the soft 

 shell allows the inside work to be perceived 

 outside, whereas the stiff shell reveals no- 

 thing. 



Lastly, the hatching does not always stop 

 the growth that is not preceded by feeding. 

 For a little while longer the larva continues 

 to increase in size; it completes the work of 

 acquiring stability in its new equilibrium, the 

 equilibrium of a living creature; it improves 

 Its physique by some supplementary stretch- 

 ing. The Scorpion has already told us this; 

 the grub of the Minotaur and many others 

 assure us of the same thing. It is, on a 

 smaller scale, what we saw before in the 

 Locust's wing,^ which, issuing from a very 

 small sheath, soon unfurls into a sail of 

 generous breadth. 



Twice, therefore, am I changing my 

 opinions in this history of the Dung-beetles: 

 first, on the subject of the paste spread on 

 the walls of the natal chamber; secondly, on 

 the subject of the egg that increases in size 

 after it is laid. I have corrected my state- 

 ments without being greatly ashamed of my 



1 Cf. The Life of the Grasshopper: chap. xix. — Trans- 

 lator's Note. 



400 



