The Sisyphus: the Instinct of Paternity 



to safeguard the prosperity of the race, is 

 to lay her eggs on the leaves of a cabbage, 

 what use would a father's solicitude be? 

 The mother's botanical instinct requires no 

 assistance. At laying-time, the other parent 

 would be an obstacle. Let him go and flirt 

 elsewhere ; at that critical time he would only 

 be in the way. 



Most insects are equally summary In their 

 educational methods. They have but to 

 choose the refectory which will be the home 

 of the family once it is hatched, or else a 

 place that will allow their young to find 

 suitable fare for themselves. There is no 

 need for the father in these cases. After 

 the wedding, therefore, the unoccupied male, 

 henceforth useless, drags out a languid exist- 

 ence for a few days more and at last dies 

 without lending the least assistance in the 

 work of setting up his offspring in life. 



Things do not always happen in quite such 

 a primitive fashion. There are tribes that 

 provide a dower for their families, that 

 prepare board and lodging for them in 

 advance. The Bees and Wasps, in particu- 

 lar, are masters in the industry of making 

 cellars, jars and satchels in which the mess 

 of honey for the young is hoarded; they are 

 perfect in the art of creating burrows stocked 



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