252 LEPISM&. 



I tried to cater for their rather bizarre diet by 

 giving them a little sugar and cake, some wall 

 paper and rotten wood. After a few days they 

 lost all fear, and would come on my hand and 

 daintily nibble a little sugar or cake offered them ; 

 they shunned the light and kept quiet through 

 the day, coming out for active frolics in the 

 evening. 



A German naturalist says Lepismce will gnaw 

 holes in letter paper ; in fact they seem to be 

 omnivorous, for, like the cockroach, they will 

 eat clothing, tapestry, and the silken trimmings 

 of furniture. This insect seems to be found 

 abundantly in India, for a lady has told me that 

 her garments could not be laid aside for even a 

 few days without swarms of these "silver fishes" 

 gathering in the folds and creases. It shares 

 with the Death-Watch a liking for paste, and 

 this makes it attack the bindings of books, so that 

 it is not an infrequent tenant of the shelves 01 

 damp, unused libraries, but from its small size 

 I should imagine it cannot do any very serious 

 amount of damage. 



Whether my specimens will develop any in- 



