THE GREAT PEACOCK 183 



seekers gone astray ; but there the light of a lamp, an 

 irresistible attraction to nocturnal insects, might have 

 diverted the pilgrims. 



Let us consider only such areas as were in darkness. 

 There the pilgrims were numerous. I found them 

 almost everywhere in the neighbourhood of their goal. 

 When the captive was in my study the butterflies did not 

 all enter by the open window, the direct and easy way, 

 the captive being only a few yards from the window. 

 Several penetrated the house downstairs, wandered 

 through the hall, and reached the staircase, which was 

 barred at the top by a closed door. 



These data show us that the visitors to the wedding- 

 feast did not go straight to their goal as they would have 

 done were they attracted by any kind of luminous 

 radiations, whether known or unknown to our physical 

 science. Something other than radiant energy warned 

 them at a distance, led them to the neighbourhood of the 

 precise spot, and left the final discovery to be made after 

 a vague and hesitating search. The senses of hearing 

 and smell warn us very much in this way ; they are not 

 precise guides when we try to determine exactly the point 

 of origin of a sound or smell. 



What sense is it that informs this great butterfly of the 

 whereabouts of his mate, and leads him wandering 

 through the night ? What organ does this sense affect ? 

 One suspects the antennae ; in the male butterfly they 

 actually seem to be sounding, interrogating empty 

 space with their long feathery plumes. Are these 

 splendid plumes merely items of finery, or do they really 

 play a part in the perception of the effluvia which guide 

 the lover ? It seemed easy, on the occasion I spoke of, 

 to devise a conclusive experiment. 



