XV 



T however much we New Eng- Our summer 

 landers may love flowers, there tread upon 



j vi v. i each other's 



are drawbacks to their cultiva- heels. 



tion in the pests that beset 

 them. Each plant has its enemy, and 

 there is no interim between our summer 

 visitors. No sooner is the trunk of the 

 last caterpillar packed than the rose-bug 

 arrives, bag and baggage, to take his place. 

 The half-eaten leaves that have been res- 

 cued from the jaws of the web-worm are 

 in a few hours riddled with the bites of 

 these winged pests, which are even harder 

 to destroy than their predecessors, for 

 they hunt in couples and fly, and cannot 

 be stamped out of existence. 



An imperturbable imp is the rose- 

 chafer, descendant on one side from the 

 scarabaeus ; and if his Egyptian ancestor 

 was half as hard to kill as this other flying 

 beetle, no wonder the ancients used him 

 as an emblem of immortality. 

 179 



