THE PSYCHES 69 



these was rewarded ; they secured first-rate materials and 

 wove garments of dazzling white. There were others who 

 bit deeply into the piece they chose, and made themselves a 

 motley covering, in which the snowy whiteness was marred 

 by darker particles. 



The tools the little Caterpillars use for this purpose are 

 their mandibles, which are shaped like wide shears and have 

 five strong teeth apiece. The two blades fit into each other, 

 and form an instrument capable of seizing and slicing any 

 fibre, however small. Under the microscope it is seen to be 

 a wonderful specimen of mechanical precision and power. If 

 the Sheep had a similar tool in proportion to her size, she 

 could browse on the stems of trees instead of the grass. 



It is very instructive to watch these Psyche-grubs toiling 

 to make themselves a cotton night-cap. There are numbers 

 of things to remark, both in the finish of the work and the 

 skill of the methods they employ. They are so tiny that 

 while I observe them through my magnifying glass I must 

 be careful not to breathe, lest I should overturn them or 

 puff them away. Yet this speck is expert in the art of blanket- 

 making. An orphan, born but a moment ago, it knows 

 how to cut itself a garment out of its mother's old clothes. 

 Of its methods I will tell you more presently, but first I must 

 say another word with regard to its dead mother. 



I have spoken of the downy quilting that covers the inside 

 of the chrysalid bag. It is like a bed of eider-down, on which 

 the little Caterpillars rest for a while after leaving the egg. 

 Warmly nestling in this soft rug they prepare themselves 

 for their plunge into the outer world of work. 



The Eider robs herself of her down to make a luxurious 

 bed for her brood ; the mother Rabbit shears from her own 

 body the softest part of her fur to provide a mattress for her 

 new-born family. And the same thing is done by the Psyche. 



The mass of soft wadding that makes a warm coverlet 

 for the baby Caterpillar is a material of incomparable delicacy. 

 Through the microscope it can be recognised as the scaly 



