A CONTEST WITH BATS. . 5d 
having one, showed it to his guest, assuring him 
that it was so strong, that it would crawl on 
the table with a candlestick on his back. 
“T should like to see the experiment made, 
Mr. Audubon,” De Thouville replied. 
It was accordingly done, the insect dragging 
its burthen till, on reaching the edge of the 
table, it dropped to the ground, and then took 
to flight.* 
All had retired to rest, when Audubon was 
surprised by an uproar in the naturalist’s apart: 
ment. On reaching it, to inquire the cause, what 
was his surprise at the now still more singular 
appearance of his guest, no longer attired in 
‘costume eccentric, or otherwise. Running about, 
he was engaged in a sanguinary contest with the 
bats, which had entered by the open window— 
his only weapon the handle of Audubon’s fa- 
vourite violin, which had been demolished in the 
fray. Uninterrupted by the entrance of his 
amazed visitor, he continued his extraordinary 
gyrations. Round and round he went, with the 
monotony cf a dervish, till so exhausted as to 
be scarcely able to request Audubon to procure 
one of the animals for him, as he felt convinced 
that they belonged to a “‘ new species.” 
*See Dalton’s “British Guiana,” in which a similar ex 
periment is described. 
