The Cocoon 



The line of junction, weaker than the others, 

 would seem to save it a good deal of effort, 

 for it is mostly along this line that the cover 

 is removed when the Bembex emerges from 

 the ground in the perfect state. 



I have called this cocoon a strong-box. 

 It is indeed a very solid piece of work, both 

 from its shape and from the nature of its 

 materials. Landslips or subsidences cannot 

 alter its outline, for the strongest pressure of 

 one's fingers does not always succeed in 

 crushing it. Therefore it matters little to 

 the larva if the ceiling of its burrow, dug in 

 loose soil, should fall in sooner or later; it 

 does not care much if a passing foot should 

 press upon it under its thin covering of sand; 

 it has nothing to fear once it is enclosed in 

 its stout bulwark. Nor does damp endanger 

 it. I have kept Bembex-cocoons immersed 

 in water for a fortnight at a time without 

 afterwards discovering the least trace of 

 dampness inside them. Why have we no 

 such waterproofing for our dwellings! 



Lastly, thanks to its graceful oval, this 

 cocoon seems rather the product of some 

 elaborate manufacture than that of a grub. 

 To any one unacquainted with the secret, the 

 cocoons which I had built with blotting-sand 

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