THE GUIDE TO NATURE 
15 ° 
Second, all the performances which 
make up the exhibition may be traced 
directly to the desire and earnest efforts 
of the insects to escape. The means 
employed to give an appearance of 
intelligent action to these struggles are 
sufficiently ingenious. 
In the first place, each flea is attached 
to some object in such a manner that 
it cannot free itself, while the move- 
ments of its legs and feet are not hin- 
dered or embarrassed. 
This was explained by the proprietor. 
The surface of the insect is so polished 
that no cement will adhere to it when 
dry, and should a soft or waxy sub- 
stance be used the insect dies very 
soon. (A probable cause of this might 
be the obstruction of the stigmata.) He 
stated that by tying a single silk fibre 
around the flea and knotting it on the 
dorsal side, a bristle, fine wire, or what 
not, may be cemented to the knot. I 
was not able to observe exactly where 
the fibre encircled the insect. This part 
of the process is the most delicate and 
difficult to perform. 
The proprietor states that female 
fleas are solely employed by him, since 
the males are “excessively mulish and 
altogether disinclined to work.” The 
fact that they are much smaller and 
weaker than the other sex is probably 
another and more important reason, 
and they are said to die in a few days 
when closely confined. 
The first preparation for their task-is 
stated to be as follows: the wild flea is 
put into a small pill-box with a glass 
top and bottom, revolving on an axis 
like a lottery wheel and forming a min- 
iature treadmill. After a few days’ con- 
finement herein, the flea, which in a 
state of nature is, as we know, exces- 
sively inclined to jump, becomes 
broken of the habit. It is said that the 
constant raps which it receives, when 
attempting to jump and thereby hitting 
the sides of its prison, incline it to walk. 
If this be true, and it might readily be 
tested by experiment, the flea’s educa- 
tion is entirely comprised in it, and, so 
far as it goes, it is a species of training. 
I am not yet convinced of the accuracy 
of the statement. A “wild” flea was 
shown, attached by one foot to a minute 
ball and chain, and certainly jumped 
continually. If a “tame” or educated 
specimen had been similarly weighted, 
and had showed no desire to jump, it 
would have indicated the truth of the 
theory, provided its legs were found to 
be sound. This, however, was not done, 
and all the “tame” ones, having some- 
thing on their backs, might thereby be 
affected differently from one confined 
only by one “foot.” 
The performances may be divided 
into two classes : first, by fleas attached 
to a movable object; and second, by 
fleas attached to an immovable object. 
The former (with one exception) are 
employed in pulling, pushing, or carry- 
ing some object about. This portion of 
the exhibition is a genuine exposition 
of the very extraordinary strength in 
proportion to its size, which is pos- 
sessed by this little insect. Small and 
beautifully executed models of horse- 
cars, vessels, coaches, a wheelbarrow, 
butterfly, etc., are pulled about, each by 
a single flea attached firmly to a minute 
pole or wire, extending from or under 
the object. Small bits of silk, tissue 
paper or other light material are at- 
tached to the knot on the flea’s back, 
and by courtesy are termed dresses, or 
equestrians as the case may be. 
The proprietor states that the weight 
of a flea is about 0.05 of a grain, or, if 
well fed, 0.1 grain. He states that the 
model of the street car exhibited weighs 
one hundred and twenty grains, or 
about twelve hundred times the weight 
of the flea which drags it. Whether 
these figures be precisely accurate or 
not. it is a very remarkable effort for 
so small a creature. Vigorous speci- 
mens are said to occur which are able 
to pull even a considerably larger 
weight. 
The fleas from dogs are less strong 
than the human parasite, and require 
more frequent feeding. The ordinary 
flea will remain four days, it is said, 
without injury for want of nourish- 
ment, and will live for weeks, though 
diminishing in weight. They are said 
to live about a year ; the performers 
average eight months, but one is re- 
corded by the proprietor as having 
lived twenty-three months in his pos- 
session, the last two of which were 
passed in a state of great weakness. 
It was noticeable that the surface 
over which the fleas dragged their bur- 
dens was composed of compact blotting 
paper on which their hooklets took 
good hold, and that whenever the per- 
formance of any one individual was not 
going on, the particular object to which 
it was attached was laid on its side, or 
