THE PAPER WASP AND HIS DOINGS 97 



the every-day capers, which have not helped his 

 reputation, as I observed them on the crowded 

 porch of a summer hotel in the White Moun- 

 tains several years ago. It was in September, 

 and about twenty guests, mostly ladies and " sum- 

 mer girls," were assembled in a quiet social con- 

 vention. 



Suddenly there was a scream, as one of the fair 

 ones, with a frantic, vigorous stroke of uplifted 

 fan, distorted face, and a cross-eyed glare, clutched 

 her roll of fancy-work and fled to the house. " Did 

 he sting you ?" asked her friend, who readily fol- 

 lowed her in the door. " The horrid hornet !" she 

 exclaimed. " No, he didn't sting me, but he would 

 have done if I hadn't hit him just that minute. 

 He flew right at me in the ugliest way!" The 

 words were hardly out of her mouth when another 

 scream was heard, followed by a general clear- 

 ing of the piazza. There were now two or three 

 " mad " hornets making themselves generally pro- 

 miscuous among the guests. At the last general 

 alarm one gentleman, an old bachelor, who sat 

 tilted back in his chair near by, remarked, with 

 an expression of superior disdain at such a silly 

 exhibition of feminine weakness: " Why, ladies, 

 the hornet won't sting you if you'll only let him 

 alone ; he has been buzzing around here for an 

 hour, and hasn't stung anybody yet." 



At this moment, as fate would have it, the rov- 



7 



