( Vexlix }) 
wound was undoubtedly flooded, and the scalpellum smeared 
(and perhaps somewhat clogged) by messy green semi-fluid 
matter. But whence exactly this proceeded I could never 
quite feel sure. 
The first egg being thus laid, the insect at once proceeded 
to repeat the entire process. She walked one step down the 
stem, and stood exactly as at first. The tip of the ovipositor 
was again inserted, this time not into entirely new ground, 
but into the lower corner of the slit which had been made 
already in the cuticle ; accordingly it 7e-entered the completed 
pocket, but at that part of it which was most distant from 
the corner which contained the egg already laid. This being 
so, if we remember that the pocket was a sort of quadrant, 
it will be apparent that, before the scalpellum could again 
become completely buried, it would once more encounter 
resistance, and would have to commence the stabbing process 
once again, and, in short, to start a fresh incision opening 
(so to speak) out of the first one. This is what it did. It 
stabbed its way along, till again it was buried up to the hilt 
in a hole of nearly its own dimensions ; and then, exactly as 
before and by identical movements, expanded this hole into 
a sub-quadrant-shaped pocket: again came out of the pocket, 
and returned to ‘‘half-cock,” etc., etc., as before described. 
Then followed the second oviposition, which was throughout 
a precise replica of the first. So now two eggs lay each in a 
little corner or nidus of its own, at an equal distance from the 
long clean slit which was the mouth of the entire excavation. 
Another step downwards by the insect succeeded, and 
again as before a pocket was formed and an egg laid in it. 
And so the work went on without interruption for an hour 
and a half, while I watched it through a hand-lens of con- 
siderable power. During this time 15 eggs in all were 
duly deposited (all in one long line and approximately equi- 
distant from one another), and a pocket formed to receive 
another. But, at this point, something went wrong. An 
egg was produced, but for some reason failed to enter the 
ovipositor, and tumbled to the ground. Thereupon the insect 
struck work, and my observations had to cease. 
