1868,] 215 



But let us leave for awhile the brilliant sunshine, with its life and 

 colour, and endeavour to realize in the shades of the wood that this is 

 winter time ! Here are pathways cut through the underwood, and the 

 shade cast by trees bo dense that it is like darkness to you at first. 

 How much colder it feels here ! One sees but little insect life till one 

 watches carefully. But look at all those very long-bodied, slender 

 dragon-flies that are slowly steering their way about the low plants : 

 what thorough creatures of the shade are they, and how different from 

 their swift brethren of the waterside ! Moths of various kinds rise 

 from the dry leaves and herbage on which you tread ; and then sud- 

 denly rises up the large red-brown Oi/Uo Leda, a butterfly that never 

 voluntarily leaves the " dim, religious light " of the woods, and delights 

 to settle in the darkest corners on the dead leaves to which it bears so 

 close a resemblance. Where the sunshine breaks through the screen 

 of foliage, yellow-banded and spotted Sesperiidce are merrily darting 

 about ; and even dark Satyridce of the genus Mycalesis, quitting for a 

 few minutes the shades they love, chase each other slowly over the 

 moist earth. Long files of large ants, with most vicious-looking man- 

 dibles, traverse the ground in a determined and business-like manner ; 

 one energetic set is dragging along a huge dark crimson Iiolus, which 

 has been partly crushed by some passing foot, but retains sufficient life 

 to struggle against its myriad foes. Plainly, the aspect of the woods 

 only serves to convince the entomologist that there is no " winter of 

 Ids discontent " on the coast of Natal. 



And now let us glance at the richer, fuller life of summer in the 

 same region. To do this, we will transport ourselves to the wider and 

 less broken forest that lies at the back of the Berea. It is almost the 

 " deep mid-noon," and, in the open where you stand, the sun pours 

 down a flood of heat that makes you glad to rest awhile under the 

 friendly shade of a large "flat-crown" Acacia. The heat, however, 

 does not at all discompose your Kafir collector, who has encountered a 

 sable friend, and squats with him in the full sunlight, glad of any excuse 

 to do nothing. The indispensable snuff is produced on both sides, from 

 a small fur bag which is carried, faute de pocTie, in a neat roll thrust 

 through the lobe of the ear. No word is uttered for a little, each 

 gixing himself up to the full enjoyment of the snuff, which educes long- 

 drawn sighs and copious tears of delight. In the conversation that 

 ensues, it is plainly to be gathered that the friend is much puzzled by 

 your Kafir's net and collecting box, and notably by the contents of the 

 latter ; but though your " intelligent Zulu " is not much more 

 enlightened on the meaning of insect-collecting than was Punch's chaw- 



