The Sacred Beetle and Odiers 



be effected without any crumbling of his 

 treasure or impediment in the rolling. The 

 surface of the sphere, therefore, is not 

 thoroughly treated; it is not compressed into 

 a rind or made scrupulously even. 



Underground, when it is a question of 

 getting the egg's casket ready, the casket that 

 is to be both larcfer and cradle, it becomes 

 another matter. An incision is made all 

 round the pill, dividing it into two almost 

 equal portions, and one half is subjected to 

 manipulation, while the other lies just against 

 it, destined to receive the same treatment 

 later. The hemisphere worked upon is 

 rounded into a ball, which will be the belly 

 of the prospective pear. This time, the 

 modelling is performed with the nicest care: 

 the future of the larva, which also is exposed 

 to the dangers of overdry bread, is at stake. 

 The surface of the ball is therefore patted 

 at one spot after the other, conscientiously 

 hardened by compression and levelled along 

 a regular curve. The spherule thus ob- 

 tained possesses geometrical precision, or 

 very nearly so. Let us not forget that this 

 difficult work is accomplished without rolling, 

 as the clean condition of the surface shows. 



The rest of the business may be guessed 

 from the proceedings of the Sacred Beetle. 



168 



