The Life of the Weevil 



nothing to distinguish the speck which marks 

 a refreshment-bar from that which marks 

 a cradle; therefore it is impossible, by merely 

 counting the borings, to tell exactly how 

 many eggs have been confided to the capsule. 

 Let us strike an average. Of the twenty 

 punctures in one shell, let us consider ten 

 as relating to the eggs. These would be 

 twice as many as the cell could feed. What 

 then has become of the surplus? 



Here we are reminded of the Weevil who 

 scatters over her pea-pod an excessive number 

 of eggs, out of all proportion to the pro- 

 visions which it contains. In the same way, 

 on the iris, the pregnant mother takes no 

 stock of the rations; she peoples the already 

 populated and fills the overflowing. Her 

 procreatlve fury does not reckon with the 

 future. Let those thrive who may. 



We can understand V erbascum thapsus 

 allowing itself forty-eight thousand seeds 

 when the germination of a single one would 

 suflice to maintain the species: its distaff is 

 a treasure-house of food by which a host 

 of consumers will profit. But we cannot 

 understand the Pea-weevil, the Iris-weevil 

 and many others who, though not exposed 

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