144 BIRD PARADISE 



I have known the pioneer of the band to appear 

 in a very few minutes after a young chicken had 

 died. In a short time others would arrive — all 

 bringing their burying tools with them, and all 

 getting right to work just as soon as they arrived. 

 Little by little they remove the dirt from under 

 the body, letting it down gradually until it is well 

 below the surface of the ground. Then they 

 tumble the particles of earth on the upper side 

 until the treasure is entirely covered. The time 

 of the task may take many days, but when done 

 it is certainly well done. The food which one 

 creature repels is the favorite article of diet with 

 another. The beetles enjoy with keen relish the 

 food that is only made savory to them by corrup- 

 tion. The eggs are deposited where the larvsB 

 as soon as hatched can feed upon the buried 

 body. The beetle to the ordinary vision seems 

 quite devoid of beauty, but when I put him under 

 my magnifying glass a new creature appears. 

 " He hath made all things beautiful in his time " 

 is verified completely when we see things, " not 

 through a glass darkly, but fece to face." 



The other morning I discovered a piece of meat 

 dropped by some one at the side of the road. A 



