INSECTS AND WAR 21 



rat and subsequently bite man, their bites com- 

 municate bubonic plague to human beings. 

 Plaguethe Old English " Black Death " is a 

 real peril in our armies now operating in Asia 

 and in certain parts of Africa. 



Just as some fleas attack one species of 

 mammal or bird and avoid closely-allied species, 

 so the human flea has its favourites and its 

 aversions. There is a Turkish proverb which 

 says, " An Englishman will burn a bed to catch 

 a flea/' and those who suffer severely from flea- 

 bites would certainly do so. The courage of the 

 Turk in facing the flea, and even worse dangers, 

 may be, as the schoolboy wrote, " explained by 

 the fact that a man with more than one wife is 

 more willing to face death than if he had only 

 one." But there are persons even a flea will not 

 bite. Mr. Russell has reminded us, in his pre- 

 face, of the distinguished lady who remarked, 

 " Quant d moi ce riest pas la morsure, c'est la 

 promenade! " 



There are one or two structural features in 

 a flea which are peculiar, the most remarkable 

 being that, unlike most other insects, it is much 

 taller than it is broad. As a rule, insects such 

 as a cockroach, the bed-bug, or a stag-beetle 



