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by night as well as by day ; indeed, in the evening, and for some 

 hours after nightfall, its occurrence is more frequent than in the 

 daytime. So loud and sonorous was the sound which proceeded 

 from the large nest now in the Oxford Museum, that at night, 

 when all around was still, it could be heard most distinctly at a 

 distance of r)0 yards from the house though the doors and windows 

 were all closed. It appeared to be given off by hundreds of 

 individuals in concert, all keeping the most exact time. . The 

 purpose of this noise, and the means by which it is made, seem 

 to be mysteries wliich science has yet to unravel for us. 



Rain appears to cause these insects but little annoyance, and 

 the indifference they manifest towards it is really surprising, 

 venturing out to pursue their ordinary avocations with little 

 apparent concern when it is poui'ing in torrents. 



Though wasps consume animal as well as vegetable food, 

 yet, as a general rule, the substance which contains the greatest 

 amount of saccharine matter is that most eagerly sought after by 

 them ; nor is any clicmical analysis required to show them what 

 the substance is which is richest in that article; guided by 

 instinct, they ai'o enabled unerringly to make proper selection. 

 When honey dew abmmds, as it sometimes does, it supplies them, 

 as well as the bees, with a plentiful feast. 



In 1854 these insects were exceedingly numerous throughout 

 all parts of the country. Before the tlose of the summer, and 

 many weeks before the usual period at which their labours cease, 

 nests were found which had become deserted. It seemed strange 

 that these nests, which, in their situation, were everything that 

 could be desired, should be deserted at such a time. They 

 mostly appeared to have been left when in full work, being about 

 eight inches in diameter, or something like two-thirds of their 

 usual full size. At the same time thousands of these insects 

 were found dead, scattered under fruit trees and elsewhere. 

 This circumstance would sufficiently account for the desertion 

 of the nests just mentioned, but what could be the cause of this 

 mortality? The weather was magnificent! Just such as one 

 would imagine wasps would rejoice in. Could this fatality be in 

 any way connected with that dread epidemic which was raging 

 in ill-drained, smoky, and populous towns amongst the human 

 species ? Au atmosphere which engenders cholera among man- 



