v. 
The Devil’s Coach Horse 
THE DEVIL’S COACH 
HORSE 
The Devil’s Coach Horse or cocktail beetle 
or rove beetle (“ staphylinidae ”) is dread- 
fully “ misunderstood ” — and perhaps, to 
a great extent, has himself to blame. He 
is so very short tempered and so highly 
pugilistic, always ready to pick a quarrel 
with anybody and everybody he meets; 
and his scorpion-like attitude has caused 
many human beings, who do not know him, 
to assume that he must be very dangerous, 
and possibly poisonous. He is generally 
about an inch in length, of a dull black 
colour, with short elytra or wing cases, 
and may be seen very frequently during 
the summer months on the beds in the 
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