The Life of the Weevil 
powerful veins, has to occupy the outside. 
The statics of the small-brained Weevils 
agrees with that of the scientists. 
Watch her at work. She is standing on 
the line along which the leaf is rolled, with 
_ three legs on the part already rolled and the 
three opposite legs on the part still free. 
Firmly fixed on both with her claws and 
tufts, she obtains a purchase with the legs 
on one side while straining with the legs on 
the other side. The two halves of the 
machine alternate as motive powers, so that 
at one moment the shaped cylinder en- 
croaches on the free leaf and at another the 
free leaf moves and is applied to the cylinder 
already formed. 
There is nothing regular, however, about 
these alternations, which depend upon cir- 
cumstances known to the insect alone. 
Perhaps they merely enable the insect to take 
a brief rest without suspending a task which 
does not allow of interruptions. In the 
same way our two hands mutually relieve 
each other by taking it in turns to carry a 
burden. 
It is impossible to form an exact image 
of the difficulties overcome without watching, 
146 
