THE YELLOW WASP 277 



to persuade those who have a horror of these creatures that 

 they are at any rate interesting. An idle watcher marked a 

 hornet digging at the bottom of a hole in a piece of decayed 

 wood, either with a view of making a nest or carrying away 

 material for a nest. In the temporary absence of the insect 

 the watcher stuck a needle across the entrance of the hole. 

 The hornet on returning strove mightily to remove the 

 needle, but even her double jaws were useless. They could 

 get no grip on the smooth and polished surface, so, after a 

 while, as if in despair, the hornet flew away. She was 

 absent some twenty minutes. It seemed that she had gone 

 ' for good.' The needle was on the point of being withdrawn 

 when the hornet flew back and began to work with her jaws 

 at the needle, not pulling and hauling, but, as it appeared, 

 mouthing. Soon it became obvious that she was coating 

 the needle with wax or some waxy substance. It was laid 

 on, as a man may put resin on his grip, to provide a surer 

 hold. The policy was effectual, and presently by means of 

 the adhesive plaster the builder could apply her enormous 

 strength to some purpose, and pulled away the obstruction. 



Such an action is evidence of some capacity very near 

 reason. At any rate it is an indication that the hornet, the 

 greatest of the wasp tribe, has an adaptability quite remark- 

 able among insects. People usually perhaps dislike wasps 

 too heartily to observe them with much interest. They 

 certainly add a terror to life. Within some favourite 

 haunt, such as the side of a Norfolk stream or broad, 

 they may destroy all the pleasure of an else perfect 

 place and time. On a hot August day they will swarm 

 into the cabin of a wherry in such hundreds that existence is 

 unbearable, and flight is the only safety. Occasions are on 

 record when they have driven ploughmen from the fields at 

 a later date. It is a quite repellent experience of very late 



