130 UP AND DOWN THE BROOKS. 



thoroughly good naturalist who knows his own 

 parish thoroughly." 



But one does not need to be much of an en- 

 tomologist to be acquainted with the mosquito, 

 although acquaintance with the eggs of that insect 

 is a different matter. 



The mosquito was the first boat-builder. Of 

 that I am certain. 



" Vessels large may venture more, 

 But little boats should keep near shore," 



says wise B. Franklin. Mrs. Mosquito has prob- 

 ably heard of that bit of wisdom, for she some- 

 times chooses such very small puddles in which to 

 sail her boats that a careless cow, stepping in, 

 tramples the puddle out of existence, much to the 

 detriment of mosquito children, no doubt. 



You will take Mrs. Mosquito's boat for a bit 

 of soot, if you are not careful. But pick it up 

 and you will see the tiny eggs massed together 

 so regularly, the whole narrowing toward either 

 end according to boat-shape. You cannot make 

 such a boat sink. Put it into a bottle and pour 

 in water. The mosquito-boat will always come 

 up on top, if the eggs have not hatched. Mos- 

 quitoes vary in the length of time they require 

 ere they can come forth to bid defiance to man- 

 kind. Some that I had took sixty-eight days or 

 more, I believe, but those mosquitoes must have 

 been quite a dilatory set, the usual time being 

 about four weeks after hatching. Mine were a 



