JUPITER PLUVIUS. 
7 3 
Flies, crossing and re-crossing, poised motionless for a 
moment, then darting away with that mingled grace and 
power which among the winged things of this world is, I 
think, unmatched. Where they come from I cannot tell, 
but any one may read the meaning of their presence in the 
air. Dragon-flies are the swallows of the insect world, and 
their prey is the Mosquito, the Gnat, the Midge, the Fly of 
every size and hue. These swarms, therefore, tell us that 
the moistened surface of the ground, with its mouldering 
leaves and sodden grass, its mouldy bark and decaying 
refuse, has become one vast incubator teeming with every 
form of ephemeral life. Many another indication of the 
same kind will catch the observant eye. 
Talkative Mynas in pairs are pacing the ground, for 
among the sprouting grass they will find the lubberly sons 
of the Grasshopper. Acridotheres , the grasshopper-hunter, 
is the happiest of ornithological names ; but I never could 
understand why it should be called tristis. Who ever saw 
a sad Myna ? Crows also in twos and threes are taking an 
interest in something, and for once I am in charity even 
with them. 
The roadside rivulets are full of little Fishes, arrived 
from I know not where, to grow fat on the Earthworm and 
