86 EYE SPY 



perfectly white, surrounding a small speckled bee- 

 tle (I suppose). I found several on my chrysan- 

 themums about two weeks ago, but they seem to 

 have disappeared now." 



This supposed " small speckled beetle " lets out 

 the secret of our "cow-spittle." The old cow is 

 acquitted, and also the snake, who has enough 

 mischief to answer for. 



Each of these masses of bubbles is seen to sur- 

 round the stem, upon which it clings, out of con- 

 sideration to the popular tradition, spitted through 

 the centre, as it were, with its culm of grass or 

 branch of bramble or weed. But the true expec- 

 torator is within, laved in his own froth, his beak 

 embedded in the juicy stem, and his suds factory 

 continually at work. We have only to blow or 

 scrape off the white bubbles, and we shall disclose 

 him, even though he makes considerable effort to 

 dodge out of sight, either in the remnant froth or 

 around the stem. But it is not a beetle that we 

 at last bring to view. It would be hard, indeed, 

 for any one but a naturalist to decide on so short 

 an acquaintance precisely what to call him. He 

 is green and speckled in color, anywhere from a 

 quarter to half an inch in length, depending upon 

 his age, and somewhat to be anticipated in the 

 extent of his show of suds. He is wide of brow, 

 has rather prominent eyes, and tapers off some- 

 what wedge-shaped behind. 



