THE HERO ENTERS SUDDENLY 



station himself regularly under the water- 

 ing-pot when the flower-bed in which he 

 lived, and to which he was of such benefit in 

 destroying noxious insects, received its 

 shower-bath. I suppose he found it re- 

 freshing to his dry back. 



On two or three occasions Chupes 

 looked as if he had surgical intentions on 

 the entomologist's warts, but the opportu- 

 nity for performing an operation never 

 presented itself, as the coveted subject usu- 

 ally hopped off when the would-be surgeon 

 came within four or five inches of him. 



The manner in which this goggle-eyed 

 creature used to catch his prey was a never- 

 failing source of wonder to me. He would 

 sit motionless for half an hour at a time, his 

 bulgy, palpitating sides alone testifying to 

 the fact that he was not merely a paper- 

 weight or a bronze ornament. Suddenly 

 you might fancy that you saw a convulsive 

 3 1 



