46 THE HOUSE FLY 



bull elephant which had been mortally wounded by a 

 hunter, and had escaped only to perish of its wounds. 

 Its body was at the time a vast moving mass of fly maggots. 

 Returning the following day to take the tusks I saw a 

 wonderful sight. The wild pigs had torn the skin to 

 pieces, and to escape the heat of the sun, and to find a 



FIG. 14 



MASSES OF EGGS OF THE HOUSE FLY such as may be 



seen on stale meat, garbage, &c. 

 (By permission of Prof . R. Newstead, F.R.S.} 



suitable place to pupate, the maggots were leaving the 

 carcase in a vast procession a foot deep, three yards 

 broad, and six yards long. They were heading for the 

 matted, damp undergrowth adjacent. 



When Man made his advent and began to congregate 

 for defensive and offensive purposes into tribes and nations, 

 a considerable number of Nature's scavengers became a 



