Flies : " The Hosts of Ackor" 2 1 9 



A flesh-fly, that just flutters on the wing, 

 Awake to buzz, but not alive to sting ; 

 Brisk where he cannot, backward where he can, 

 The teasing ghost of the departed man." 



Is " insect " a good synonym for man ? The poets think 

 it is, but I confess I do not agree with them. Not because 

 the word is itself absurd as applied to creatures with solidly 

 continuous bodies like men and women (for poetry does not 

 of necessity concern itself with the real meanings of words), 

 but because I am no pessimist, and think much too well of 

 my kind to allow that human beings are either reptiles, 

 vermin, or insects. 



But reptiles and insects are words which, outside of poetry 

 and hyperbole, have exact meanings, and there is nothing 

 in the nature of these creatures to make their name a term 

 of reproach, or befitting as a synonym for worthless men. 



What has an underhanded, sneaking coward in common 

 with the ineffable splendour of forest-ruling pythons? Where 

 does the comparison begin between the cringing, malice- 

 mongering woman-wretch and the awfulness of the elegant 

 and courageous vipers ? Why are the mischief-making and 

 the worthless called by the name of harmless, useful toads? 

 Does the crocodile properly illustrate small, pitiful hypocrisy? 

 No : I cannot admit that the baseness of humanity finds 

 any reflection in reptiles; nor yet in insects. It is, of 

 course, a gross degradation to a human being that he should 

 so lose all appearance of reason in his conduct as to seem 

 no better than an unreasoning insect. But meanwhile it 

 should not be forgotten that in this declension of humanity 

 from its own noble level there is no ground for making the 

 insect sink with the man. Because a filthy man descends 

 to the same pleasure in filth that a dung-beetle finds in the 

 dunghill, is the latter dirty ? Because he leaves his trail on 

 everything he touches, is the snail to be abused for defiling ? 

 Because he taints whatever he settles on, is the fly as 



