POISON-FANG AND STILETTO 171 



the most complete stupidity. M. Fabre's patient 

 experiments tend to prove, that the insect is in 

 reality actuated almost wholly by an instinct 

 that compels her to a certain course of action, 

 which she follows blindly without reasoning in 

 any way. 



Taking advantage of the Sphex' invariable 

 habit of leaving her prey on the threshold of her 

 burrow while she goes down into it alone, M. 

 Fabre on several occasions moved the motionless 

 cricket further away from the entrance. On 

 returning from her visit of inspection, and 

 finding that her quarry was not where she had 

 placed it, the insect promptly dragged it back 

 again to its former position, and then again left 

 it while she went down into the burrow a second 

 time. No less than forty times was this trick 

 played upon the same Sphex, and forty times 

 did she patiently drag the cricket back again and 

 leave it at the entrance to the burrow while she 

 went below alone. Never once did it occur to 

 the Sphex to take the cricket straight down into 

 the cell without paying this preliminary visit ! 

 On another occasion M. Fabre observed a Sphex 

 busily closing the entrance to her burrow; with 

 the aid of his knife he cleared out the stopped-up 

 gallery, carefully removed the motionless prey 

 and the precious egg from the cell, and watched 

 to see what the Sphex would do. I will give his 

 observations in his own words: "Finding the 

 entrance open, she entered and remained some 

 moments, then came forth and took up her work 

 where I had interrupted it, beginning to stop 

 the entrance conscientiously, sweeping the dust 



