330 THE SEASON WHY. 



1 Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth 

 corrupt, and where thieves do not break through and steal." MATT. vi. 



keeps her butterflies, moths, and caterpillars, locked up during the 

 whiter, in their egg-state; and we have to admire the various 

 devices to which, if we may so speak, the same nature has resorted 

 for the security of the egg. Many insects enclose their eggs in a 

 silken web j others cover them with a coat of hair, torn from their 

 own bodies ; some glue them together ; and others, like the moth 

 of the silkworm, glue them to the leaves upon which they are 

 deposited, that they may not be shaken off by the wind, or washed 

 away by rain ; some again make incisions into leaves, and hide an 

 egg in each incision ; whilst some envelope their eggs with a soft 

 substance, which forms the first aliment of the young animal ; and 

 some again make a hole in the earth, and, having stored it with a 

 quantity of proper food, deposit their eggs in ib. 



1296. Why do butterflies fly by day ? 



Because they are organised to enjoy light and warmth, and they 

 live upon the sweets of flowers which by day are most accessible. 



1297. Why do moths fly by night ? 



Because they are organised to enjoy subdued light and cool air ; 

 and as they take very little food during the short life they have in 

 the winged state, they find sufficient by night. Some of the moths, 

 like that of the silk- worm, take no food from the time they escape 

 from the chrysalis until they die. 



Because, also, they form the food of bats, owls, and other of the 

 night-flying tribes. 



1298. Why are the bodies of moths generally covered with 

 a very thick down ? 



Because, as they fly by night, they are liable to the effects of cold 

 and damp. The moths, therefore, are nearly all of them covered 

 with a very thick down, quite distinguishable from the lighter down 

 of butterflies. 



1299. Why do moths fly against the candle flame ? 

 Because their eyes are organised to bear only a small amount of 



light. When, therefore, they come within the light of a candle, 

 their sight is overpowered and their vision confused ; and as they 

 cannot distinguish objects, they pursue the light itself, and fly against 

 the flame. 



