LIVES OF THE LANTERN BEARERS 



TO all wild creatures fire is an unknown and 

 hated thing, although it is often so fascinat- 

 ing to them that they will stand transfixed gazing 

 at its mysterious light, while a hunter, unnoticed, 

 creeps up behind and shoots them. 



In the depth of the sea, where the sun is power- 

 less to send a single ray of light and warmth, 

 there live many strange beings, fish and worms, 

 which, by means of phosphorescent spots and 

 patches, may light their own way. Of these 

 strange sea folk we know nothing except from 

 the fragments which are brought to the surface 

 by the dredge; but over our fields and hedges, 

 throughout the summer nights, we may see and 

 study most interesting examples of creatures 

 which produce their own light. Heedless of 

 whether the moon shines brightly, or whether an 

 overcast sky cloaks the blackest of nights, the 

 fireflies blaze their sinuous path through life. 

 These little yellow and black beetles, which illu- 

 mine our way like a cloud of tiny meteors, have 

 indeed a wonderful power, for the light which 

 they produce within their own bodies is a cold 

 glow, totally different from any fire of human 

 agency. 



In some species there seems to be a most roman- 



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