tents, there was a whirr of wings, and 

 the Hawk Moth, or Sphinx, as it is sonic- 

 times called, made its appearance, and 

 began to probe the opening primroses 

 \vith its long tubular proboscis. It looks 

 so large that it is often mistaken for a 

 humming bird — hence its name. Some- 

 times it comes to the window to visit 

 the scarlet geranium. It hovers over 

 the flower with vibrating wings till it 

 extracts the honey." 



"Suppose," said Howard, "that you 

 wish to catch Moths, nets cannot be 

 used very well at night." 



"No; but a favorite method with 

 amateur naturalists is to carry a lan- 

 tern, and spread beer and molasses on 

 the trees to allure the Moths. To go 

 out 'mothing' is really a very exciting 

 experience." 



"We'll know all about it before long,' 

 said John to Howard. 



"Do Moths have any enemies besides 

 man?" Alice inquired. "I know the 

 clothes moth and those that ruin vege- 

 tation are detested." 



"We cannot help our attitude toward 



The little Moth 



Late fattened on a piece of cloth. 



Yet even he is interesting. As soon as 

 he is born, he w^eaves for himself a 

 cylindrical tube of wool and hair, and 

 lines it with some silky substance. The 

 fashion of this dress is only changed 

 by making it longer, or by the insertion 

 of gores in the sides, if it becomes too 

 close; sometimes these patches are very 

 different in color from the original, as 

 the color depends on that of the mate- 

 rial used." 



''Do any of the other Moths make 

 dresses or build houses?" John inquired, 

 with a growing interest in the subject. 



"Many of them," was the reply, "are 

 wonderful little architects, using all 

 sorts of material. One kind makes its 

 habitation of lichens; another unites 

 little stones with a silken cement. The 

 Goat Moth makes himself a covering 

 thick as broadcloth out of the raspings 

 of w^ood united w'ith strong silk. Some 

 Moths live in silken dwellings. Leaves 

 are a favorite material. These are made 

 into rolls of various shapes, cylindrical, 

 conical, horn-shaped, and are securely 

 fastened at the edges with silk threads. 



One ingenious little builder is obliged 

 to gnaw the stronger veins of the leaf 

 at regular intervals in order to bend it 

 to his purpose. Another has a house- 

 raising. When he gets his triangular 

 piece of leaf ready, he applies the 

 weight of his body to thread-like cables, 

 and so raises it to the perpendicular." 



"I never knew before," said Madge, 

 "that Moths had any sense. I never 

 saw them do anything but stupidly burn 

 themselves." 



"You see," was the reply, "that even 

 insects must not be judged by mere ap- 

 pearances. There is one little Moth 

 called the 'Gold-tailed' that, having con- 

 structed a capital little home, spreads a 

 soft carpet wherever she must tread 

 in getting her food. The Silk Moth is 

 by far the most useful of Moths, but it 

 is not interesting in the moth state. 

 It is pale buff, does not use its wings, 

 and seldom goes but a few feet from the 

 cocoon where it is hatched. The worm 

 stage, especially the silk spinning pe- 

 riod, is the time to watch with interest 

 this little creature whose marvellous 

 spinarets clothe in silken raiment the 

 inhabitants of the earth." 



"I like best the Moths that, dressed in 

 silk themselves, come to visit at 

 night," said Madge. "They are cunning 

 little dears." 



"I am glad you admire your new ac- 

 quaintances," her aunt replied. "You 

 know that many of the long-tubed 

 flowers which supplv the Moths \yith 

 food open only at night, so there is a 

 reason why Moths should be up and 

 out in the evening; but as no such ne- 

 cessity exists in the case of children, 

 vou may all go to bed." 



"Now we protest." said Alice, "that it 

 is cruel to send us to bed until you 

 promise to take us 'out mothing' the 

 first fine evening." 



"I'll agree if you will," John volun- 

 teered, "to smear the trees with mo- 

 lasses." 



"As John has taken the sweetest part 

 of tne performance, the rest of us will 

 hide in the hedge and watch for the 

 game," said Howard. 



"Very well," was the response, "and 

 now good night and pleasant dreams." 

 Belle Paxson Drury. 



215 



