The Life of the Weevil 
idea of hygiene, I took pains to keep the 
rations in good condition, in an atmosphere 
free from mustiness. I ought, on the 
contrary, to have allowed fermentation to do 
its work, softening the tough tissues and 
enhancing their flavour. 
Six weeks later, in the middle of June, the 
oldest rolls are dilapidated hovels, retaining 
scarcely a trace of their cylindrical form 
save the outer layer, a protecting roof. Let 
us open one of these ruins. Inside, there 
is absolute wreck, a mixture of shapeless 
remnants and black granules, like fine gun- 
powder; outside, a crumbling envelope, 
pierced here and there with holes. These 
openings tell me that the inhabitants have 
departed and made their way underground. 
I find them, in fact, in the layers of moist 
sand with which the jars are provided. 
Pushing and heaving with their backs, they 
have each dug themselves a round hollow, 
taking up the least possible room, in which 
the grub, rolled into a bunch, makes ready 
for its new life. 
Though formed of sandy particles, the 
wall of the cell does not threaten to collapse. 
Before lapsing into the sleep of the trans- 
168 
