- 
(gel) 
However, I had many opportunities of repeating them, both 
on the three insects first received (as aforesaid) from Miss 
Chawner, and on dozens of others which were either sent to 
me by her afterwards, or emerged from earth-cocoons received 
from the same source. The operations were always exactly 
similar; except that the number of eggs laid in immediate 
succession varied from 3 or 4 only, in some cases to as 
many as 20 (and possibly even more in others). The insects 
were indefatigable, and prolific almost beyond belief. My 
first three females produced more than a hundred eggs before 
they were three days old! All these eggs were produced 
parthenogenetically, and from most of them in due course 
came larvae, which fed and fattened on the backs of Poly- 
gonatum leaves (see Plate I, Fig. 2) with which from time to 
time I supplied them. 
I found by trying a few experiments, that it made no 
difference whatever to the insects whether I planted the 
stems upright, or obliquely, or upside down. Nor did they 
care themselves whether they moved as they worked upwards 
or downwards. Two would sometimes work on the same 
stem at the same time in opposite directions. But they 
never attempted to work transversely to the stem; and 
though I will not stop to prove it, I think it would be 
easy to show that they would have been very foolish to 
attempt it. 
Sometimes I tried them with other plants than Poly- 
gonatum. These were generally examined by the insects, 
but not approved. Sometimes, however, they consented to 
work on stems of Convallaria (Lily of the Valley), forming 
rows of confluent pockets in the usual way, and depositing 
eggs which I believe duly produced larvae. Once, also, a few 
eggs were laid in the usual style on some other plant. I 
have unluckily mislaid my original note on this; but, if my 
memory serves me, the plant was an /7vs. 
Once, when an insect had just completed her ovipositions, 
and the scalpellum was plunged to its hilt in a third incision, 
which in another moment it would have begun to widen into 
a pocket, a sudden idea occurred to me, and I soused the 
whole thing—inseect, stem, and all—with pure sulphuric ether. 
