172 WASPS AND THEIR WAYS 



This old superstition was probably 

 founded upon the belief that hornets re- 

 main in their nests during the winter, in 

 which case they would be 

 safer to build low when a 

 hard season was at hand. 



Probably a truer prediction 

 is that made by an observant 

 gamekeeper who said that the 

 height at which wasps make their nests 

 above the water is a rough index of the 

 amount of rain expected during the sum- 

 mer. In a wet season they choose the top 

 of the bank near a brook, in dry they may 

 build almost at the water's level. 



It was once believed that hornets flying 

 late in autumn foretold storms at sea. 



This seems a less reasonable prediction 

 than the one where it is said, if wasps are 

 seen flying about in great numbers toward 

 evening, it is a sign that the next day will 

 be fair and hot; but if they enter their 

 nests often at twilight, as if to hide or 



