158 FLASHLIGHTS ON NATURE 



was never a mother so hardly tasked as the royal 

 wasp foundress. By the time she has built and 

 stocked a few more cells, the three eggs first laid 

 have duly hatched out, and now she must begin 

 to look after the little grubs or larvae. I have 

 not illustrated J:his earliest stage of wasp-life, the 



NO. 4. THE CITY, FIFTEEN DAYS OLD. 



grubby or nursery period, because everybody 

 knows it well in real life. Now, as the grubs 

 hatch out, they require to be fed, and the poor, 

 overworked mother has henceforth not only to 

 find food for herself, and paper to build more 

 cells, but also to feed her helpless, worm-like 



