THE CRICKET 125 



rusty-black dots darken the front end. A little way above 

 these two dots, right at the top of the cylinder, you see the 

 outline of a thin circular swelling. This is the line where 

 the shell is preparing to break open. Soon the transparency 

 of the egg allows one to see the delicate markings of the tiny 

 creature's segments. Now is the time to be on the watch, 

 especially in the morning. 



Fortune loves the persevering, and if we pay constant 

 visits to the eggs we shall be rewarded. All round the swell- 

 ing, where the resistance of the shell has gradually been over- 

 come, the end of the egg becomes detached. Being pushed 

 back by the forehead of the little creature within, it rises and 

 falls to one side like the top of a tiny scent-bottle. The Cricket 

 pops out like a Jack-in-the-box. 



When he is gone the shell remains distended, smooth, 

 intact, pure white, with the cap or lid hanging from the open- 

 ing. A bird's egg breaks clumsily under the blows of a wart 

 that grows for the purpose at the end of the Chick's beak ; 

 the Cricket's egg is more ingeniously made, and opens like 

 an ivory case. The thrust of the creature's head is enough 

 to work the hinge. 



I said above that, when the lid is lifted, a young Cricket 

 pops out ; but this is not quite accurate. What appears is 

 the swaddled grub, as yet unrecognisable in a tight-fitting 

 sheath. The Decticus, you will remember, who is hatched 

 in the same way under the soil, wears a protective covering 

 during his journey to the surface. The Cricket is related to 

 the Decticus, and therefore wears the same livery, although 

 in point of fact he does not need it. The egg of the Decticus 

 remains underground for eight months, so the poor grub 

 has to fight its way through soil that has grown hard, and it 

 therefore needs a covering for its long shanks. But the 

 Cricket is shorter and stouter, and since its egg is only in the 

 ground for a few days it has nothing worse than a powdery 

 layer of earth to pass through. For these reasons it requires 

 no overall, and leaves it behind in the shell. 



