ARCHITECTURE. 215 
single, oval, the edges very neatly finished off and 
not prolonged mto a horn. The material is vege- 
table fibre. 
The marginal cells of the comb diverge fromthe 
vertical direction to a slight extent, but the comb 
looks stiff and heavy, and this nest does not give an 
impression of any great constructive ability. The 
general plan is less bold, and the texture less close 
and firm than the work of the other species which 
build on the same plan. Beyond the fact that V. 
rufa is a ground-wasp, I cannot say where its nests 
are likely to be found. The barrenness of my cabinet 
is indeed a proof that I have never looked in the 
right place for it. It is said to be very common at 
Bournemouth. In Ireland it is rare. It is an early 
wasp, for while the other species are still in full 
activity, this wasp has done its work for the year and 
abandoned its nest.* 
The nests of the tree-wasps, like those of the 
ground-wasps, have each their own distinctive cha- 
racter. For beauty of appearance none of them can 
be compared to the nest of V. vulgaris; but m their 
elegance of form and perfect adaptation to their 
purposes they are quite unequalled. 
The queen of paper-makers is V. britannica (Plates 
V?, XI. XII. XIV.). Her nest is distinguished from 
those which we have already noticed by the fact of 
the paper being made in large sheets, with’ long, 
nearly parallel, stripes running horizontally round 
the nest. It resembles in this respect the nest of 
* ‘Edgeworth,’ op. sup. cit. p. 472. 
