The Life of the Caterpillar 



and brilliant sunshine, I saw a host of Moths 

 gyrating in the embrasure of the open 

 window. 



It is the lovers coming to call upon their 

 sweetheart. Some are just leaving the 

 room, others going in, others again are 

 perched upon the wall, resting as though 

 jaded after a long journey. I see some ap- 

 proaching in the distance, over the walls, over 

 the curtain of cypress-trees. They are hurry- 

 ing up from all directions, but becoming more 

 and more rare. I missed the beginning of the 

 reception; and the guests are nearly all here. 



Let us go upstairs. This time, in broad 

 daylight, without losing a single detail, I once 

 more witness the bewildering spectacle into 

 which the great night Moth initiated me. My 

 study is filled with a swarm of males, whom I 

 estimate at a glance to number about sixty, as 

 far as it is possible to make a count in this 

 seething mass. After circling a few times 

 round the cage, several go to the open wind- 

 ow, but return again forthwith and resume 

 their evolutions. The most eager perch on 

 the cage, hustle and trample on one another, 

 fighting for the good places. Inside the bar- 

 rier, the captive waits impassively, with her 



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