THE CRICKET 127 



August, among the fallen leaves, where the grass has not been 

 wholly scorched by the sun, I find the young Cricket, already 

 rather big, and now black all over, with not a vestige of his 

 white girdle remaining. At this period of his life he is a 

 vagabond : the shelter of a dead leaf or a flat stone is enough 

 for him. 



Many of those who survived the raids of the Ants now fall 

 victims to the Wasp, who hunts down the wanderers and 

 stores them underground. If they would but dig their dwell- 

 ings a few weeks before the usual time they would be saved ; 

 but they never think of it. They are faithful to their ancient 

 customs. 



It is at the close of October, when the first cold weather 

 threatens, that the burrow is taken in hand. The work is 

 very simple, if I may judge by my observation of the caged 

 insect. The digging is never done at a bare point in the 

 pan, but always under the shelter of some withered lettuce- 

 leaf, a remnant of the food provided. This takes the place 

 of the grass tuft that seems indispensable to the secrecy of 

 the home. 



The miner scrapes with his fore-legs, and uses the pincers 

 of his mandibles to pull out the larger bits of gravel. I see 

 him stamping with his powerful hind-legs, furnished with a 

 double row of spikes ; I see him raking the rubbish, sweep- 

 ing it backwards and spreading it slantwise. There you have 

 the whole process. 



The work proceeds pretty quickly at first. In the yield- 

 ing soil of my cages the digger disappears underground after 

 a spell that lasts a couple of hours. He returns to the entrance 

 at intervals, always backwards and always sweeping. Should 

 he be overcome with fatigue he takes a rest on the threshold 

 of his half-finished home, with his head outside and his antennae 

 waving feebly. He goes in again, and resumes work with 

 pincers and rakes. Soon the periods of rest become longer, 

 and wear out my patience. 



The most urgent part of the work is done. Once the hole 



