The Mason-Wasps 



object of my examination, are not far from 

 a hundred strong. Peaceable now and half- 

 numbed, the population of the nest may 

 safely be subjected to this sifting and shift- 

 ing. Tweezers are all that I need. The 

 whole nest, installed in a large earthen pan, 

 is covered with a wire-gauze dome. We 

 have only to follow events day by day. 



Two factors of decay seem to play a lead- 

 ing part when the Wasps'-nest is depopulated 

 on the advent of the bad weather: hunger 

 and cold. In the winter there is no more 

 provender, no more sweet fruit, the Wasps' 

 principal food. Lastly, notwithstanding their 

 underground shelter, the frost puts an end to 

 the starved creatures. Is this really what 

 happens? We shall see. 



The pan containing the Wasps is in my 

 study, where a fire is lit daily in winter, partly 

 for my benefit and partly for that of my in- 

 sects. It never freezes there; and the sun 

 shines into the room for the greater part of 

 the day. In this mild retreat the risks of 

 depopulation by cold are eliminated. Nor is 

 there any fear of famine. Under the wire 

 cover is a saucer filled with honey; grape- 

 pips, furnished by my last bunches kept on 

 the straw, vary the diet. With such pro- 

 visions as these, if any deaths occur among 

 262 



