252 THE TROPICAL WORLD. 



The chirping Cicadw, or frog-hoppers, which Aristotle 

 mentions as delicious food, are still in high repute among the 

 American Indians ; and the Chinese, who allow nothing edible 

 to go to waste, after unravelling the cocoon of the silkworm, 

 make a dish of the pupae, which the Europeans reject with 

 scorn. 



The Groliath beetles of the coast of Guinea are roasted and 

 eaten by the natives, who doubtless, like many other savages, 

 not knowing the value of that which they are eating, often 

 make a bonne bouche of what an entomologist would most 

 eagerly desire to preserve. 



Several of the more brilliant tropical beetles are made use of 

 as ornaments, not only by the savage tribes, but among nations 

 which are able to command the costliest gems of the East. 

 The golden elytra of the Sternocera chrysis and Sternocera 

 sternicornis serve to enrich the embroidery of the Indian 

 zenana, while the joints of the legs are strung on silken threads, 

 and form bracelets of singular brilliancy. 



The ladies in Brazil wear necklaces composed of the azure 

 green and golden wings of lustrous Chrysomelidse and 

 Curculionidse, particularly of the Diamond beetle {Entimus 

 nobilis) ; and in Jamaica, the elytra of the Buprestis gigas are 

 set in ear-rings, whose gold-green brilliancy rivals the rare and 

 costly Chrysopras in beauty. 



DIAMOND BEETLE. BUl'KKsTIS GIGAS. 



