The Mason-Wasps 



work and still quite fresh from the brush,* 

 he would not fail, in passing, to drop his 

 muddy seal or his stercoral initials upon it. 

 These little annoyances have made me sus- 

 picious; and I remain obdurate to all my 

 visitor's importunities. 



Once only I allowed myself to be be- 

 guiled. The nest was placed in a corner of 

 the ceiling and the wall, on some plaster 

 mouldings. Below it stood a marble con- 

 sole-table, usually covered with books which 

 I had to be constantly consulting. In an- 

 ticipation of events, I moved my reference- 

 library away. All went well until the eggs 

 were hatched; but, as soon as the young 

 birds were there, things changed. With 

 their insatiable stomachs, into which the 

 food had barely passed before it was di- 

 gested and dissolved, the six fledgelings be- 

 came unendurable. Every minute — flick, 

 flack 1 — it rained guano on the console. 

 If my poor books had been there, oh dear, 

 oh dear! 



Dust and sweep as I might, my study 

 continued redolent of ammonia. And then 

 what a slave the birds made of me ! The 

 room was shut up at night. The father slept 



^ Cf. The Life of the Fly: chap, xvii., In which the au- 

 thor describes his collection of water-colour drawings of 

 mushrooms done by his own hand.^=«' Translator's Note. 

 146 



