The Psyches: the Laying 



and then open the case lengthwise with our 

 scissors. At the end, in the widest part, oppo- 

 site the vestibule, is the slough of the chrysa- 

 lis, a long, fragile, amber-coloured sack, open 

 at the end that contains the head, the end 

 facing the exit-passage. In this sack, which 

 she fills like a mould, lies the mother, the 

 egg-bladder, now giving no sign of life. 



From this amber sheath, which presents all 

 the usual characteristics of a chrysalis, the 

 adult Psyche emerged, in the guise of a 

 shapeless Moth, looking like a big maggot; 

 at the present time, she has slipped back into 

 her old jacket, moulding herself into it in 

 such a way that it becomes difficult to 

 separate the container from the contents. 

 One would take the whole thing for a single 

 body. 



It seems very likely that this cast skin, 

 which occupies the best place in the home, 

 formed the Psyche's refuge when, weary of 

 waiting on the threshold of her hall, she re- 

 tired to the back room. She has therefore 

 gone in and out repeatedly. This constant 

 going and coming, this continual rubbing 

 against the sides of a narrow corridor, just 

 wide enough for her to pass through, ended 



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