NOTES BY THE WAY 119 



breaking and dismembering it, will take it to his 

 nest; but here was this hornet carrying an insect 

 much larger than himself, and flying with ease and 

 swiftness. It was as if a hawk should carry a hen, 

 or an eagle a turkey. I at once proceeded to dig 

 for one of the hornets, and, after following his hole 

 about three feet under the footpath and to the edge 

 of the roadbed, succeeded in capturing him and re- 

 covering the cicada. The hornet weighed fifteen 

 grains, and the cicada nineteen; but in bulk the 

 cicada exceeded the hornet by more than half. In 

 color, the wings and thorax, or waist, of the hornet, 

 were a rich bronze; the abdomen was black, with 

 three irregular yellow bands; the legs were large 

 and powerful, especially the third or hindmost pair, 

 which were much larger than the others, and armed 

 with many spurs and hooks. In digging its hole 

 the hornet has been seen at work very early in the 

 morning. It backed out with the loosened material, 

 like any other animal under the same circumstances, 

 holding and scraping back the dirt with its legs. 

 The preliminary prospecting upon the footpath, 

 which I had observed, seems to have been the work 

 of the males, as it was certainly of the smaller hor- 

 nets, and the object was doubtless to examine the 

 ground, and ascertain if the place was suitable for 

 nesting. By digging two or three inches through 

 the hard, gravelly surface of the road, a fine sandy 

 loam was discovered, which seemed to suit exactly, 

 for in a few days the main shafts were all started 

 in the greensward, evidently upon the strength of 



