The Spotted Larinus 



aqueduct must be respected, if a suitable 

 supply of sap is to be provided until the end. 

 Accordingly, whether three or four in num- 

 ber, the grubs abstain from rasping the 

 surface too deeply. 



The cuts, which amount to no more than a 

 judicious paring of the surface, imperil 

 neither the solidity of the structure nor the 

 action of the vessels, so that the blossoms, 

 their plunderers notwithstanding, retain a 

 very healthy appearance. They expand as 

 usual, except that the pretty, blue ground is 

 stained with yellow patches, which grow 

 wider from day to day. At each of these 

 points, a grub is established under the cover 

 of the dead florets. Each blemish marks 

 one diner's seat at table. 



The florets, as we said, have for their 

 common support, for their receptacle, the 

 round knob surmounting the axis. It is on 

 this globule that the grubs begin. They 

 attack a few of the florets at their base, up- 

 rooting them without injuring them and 

 thrusting them upwards with a heave of the 

 back. The spot thus cleared is slightly 

 broken into and hollowed out and becomes 

 the first refreshment-bar. 



37 



