The Life of the Weevil 



ward; and all are ready for work when the 

 peas come into flower. 



The great attraction of the insect world 

 for the observer is that he can obtain a 

 more or less general survey of the instincts, 

 in their inexhaustible variety; for nowhere 

 do we see the wonderful order of life's 

 details more clearly revealed. Entomology, 

 I know, does not appeal to everybody from 

 this point of view : people have a poor opin- 

 ion of the artless person absorbed in the be- 

 haviour of insects. To the terrible utili- 

 tarian, a measure of peas saved from the 

 Weevil is of more importance than any 

 number of observations which bring no 

 immediate profit. 



And who has told you, O man of little 

 faith, that what is useless to-day may not be 

 useful to-morrow? If we learn the habits 

 of animals, we shall be better able to pro- 

 tect our property. Do not despise disin- 

 terested ideas, lest you live to rue the day. 

 It is by accumulating ideas, whether imme- 

 diately applicable or not, that mankind has 

 done and will continue to do better to-day 

 than yesterday, better in the future than in 

 the present. If we live by peas and horse- 

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