The Life of the Caterpillar 



short, goes a first caterpillar whom I will call 

 the leader of the march or file, though the 

 word leader, which I use for want of a bet- 

 ter, is a little out of place here. Nothing, in 

 fact, distinguishes this caterpillar from the 

 others: it just depends upon the order in 

 which they happen to line up ; and mere chance 

 brings him to the front. Among the Proces- 

 sionaries, every captain is an officer of for- 

 tune. The actual leader leads; presently he 

 will be a subaltern, if the file should break up 

 in consequence of some accident and be 

 formed anew in a different order. 



His temporary functions give him an atti- 

 tude of his own. While the others follow 

 passively in a close file, he, the captain, tosses 

 himself about and with an abrupt movement 

 flings the front of his body hither and thither. 

 As he marches ahead he seems to be seeking 

 his way. Does he in point of fact explore the 

 country ? Does he choose the most practicable 

 places? Or are his hesitations merely the re- 

 sult of the absence of a guiding thread on 

 ground that has not yet been covered? His 

 subordinates follow very placidly, reassured 

 by the cord which they hold between their 

 legs; he, deprived of that support, is uneasy. 

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