The Cabbage-caterpillar 



takes place on the cabbages in the garden : 

 that method is too uncertain and besides does 

 not lend itself to precise observation. As T 

 have in hand the necessary materials, to wit, 

 my collection of tubes swarming with the 

 parasites newly hatched into the adult form, 

 I will operate on the little table in my animals' 

 laboratory. A jar with a capacity of about a 

 litre 1 is placed on the table, with the bottom 

 turned towards the window in the sun. I put 

 into it a cabbage-leaf covered with caterpil- 

 lars, sometimes fully developed, sometimes 

 half-way, sometimes just out of the egg. A 

 strip of honeyed paper will serve the Micro- 

 gaster as a dining-room, if the experiment is 

 destined to take some time. Lastly, by the 

 mechod of transfer which I described above, 

 T send the inmates of one of my tubes into 

 the apparatus. Once the jar is closed, there 

 is nothing left to do but to let things take 

 their course and to keep an assiduous watch, 

 for days and weeks, if need be. Nothing 

 worth remarking can escape me. 



The caterpillars graze placidly, heedless of 

 their terrible attendants. If some giddy-pates 

 in the turbulent swarm pass over the caterpil- 



1 About i% pints, or .22 gallon. Translator's Note. 

 367 



