The Life of the Weevil 
and the generous cigar is thick enough to 
retain in its central part, far better than the 
slender barrel ‘does, a little of the moisture 
indispensable to the grub. In respect of 
prolonged abstinence, the Vine-Weevil can- 
not be compared with the barrel-maker; still 
less can the Poplar-Weevil. For this last, 
more often than otherwise, there is no 
danger from drought, despite the smallness 
of the cylinder, a sorry rat’s-tail. This roll 
usually falls by the side of a ditch, on the 
moist soil of the meadows. The exploiter 
of the alder is hardly in danger either: at the 
foot of her tree, a lover of the trickling 
brooks, she finds the coolness needed to keep 
her food-cylinder in good condition. But, 
when she exploits the hazel-bush, I do not 
know what conditions help her out of her 
difficulty. 
Lately the newspapers, which noisily echo 
every piece of absurdity, have been making 
a certain fuss about the gastric feats of a 
few poor devils who, to earn their bread, 
have fasted for thirty or forty days. As in 
most stunts, admirers were found, ready 
to encourage those wretched competitions. 
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