TWO WINGS. 27 



Seize upon the thinskinned stranger, 

 Banish sleep and drive to madness. v 

 Oft we see these dire bloodsuckers 

 Walk the ripphug waves in safety 

 In the genial days of summer, 

 Lay their eggs in boatshaped masses 

 On the surface of the water. 

 There to float till warmth and moisture 

 Vivify the sealedup larvae. 

 Then beguis a life aquatic. 

 Always now submerged in water. 

 Mostly swimming near the surface. 

 And when frightened diving under. 

 Writhing briskly to the bottom ; 

 But, the threatened danger over. 

 Gently rising, by their lightness. 

 To the surface of the water. 

 Where they always float tail upwards. 

 Because in that droU position 

 They can breathe air without moving. 

 When these larvae change to pupae 

 They reverse this strange position. 

 Floating with the thorax upwai'ds, 

 And this for the selfsame reason. 

 Because now their breathing organs. 

 Seated in the rounded thorax, 

 Are thus aptly brought in contact 

 With the atmosphere for breathing ; 



