The Return to the Nest 319 



other object lying on the sand : a httle pebble, 

 a pellet of earth, a scrap of dry mud, nothing 

 more. It is unworthy of attention. This 

 tender and faithful mother, who wears herself 

 out in trying to reach her nurseling's cradle, is 

 wanting at the moment her entrance-door, the 

 usual door and nothing but that door. What 

 stirs her maternal heart is her yearning for the 

 well-known passage. And yet the way is open : 

 there is nothing to stop the mother ; and the 

 grub, the ultimate object of her anxiety, is toss- 

 ing restlessly before her eyes. One bound 

 would bring her to the side of the poor thing 

 clamouring for assistance. Why does she not 

 rush to her beloved nurseling ? She could dig 

 it a new dwelling and swiftly place it in safety 

 underground. But no ; the mother persists in 

 seeking a passage that no longer exists, while 

 her child is grilling in the sun before her eyes. 

 My surprise is intense in the presence of this 

 short-sighted mother, though the sense of 

 motherhood is the most powerful and resource- 

 ful of all the feelings that stir the animal crea- 

 tion. I should hardly believe the evidence of 

 my eyes but for experiments endlessly repeated 

 with Cerceres and Philanthi as well as with 

 Bembex of different species. 



Here is something more remarkable still : 

 the mother, after prolonged hesitation, at last 



