Up the Puruni River. 321 
They were about half an inch in length, with long, slender, 
three-jointed legs, and with a predominant colour of a 
deep orange red. Sometimes while I sat reading near 
my rough dining table — made of two deal boards picked 
up floating in the river, and supported on four forked 
sticks — one of these insects would fly leisurely up to the 
spot, and then, as though to make itself at home, would 
run once or twice up and down the table and return to 
its place near me. It would then open and shut its 
wings, and perform the most extraordinary antics with its 
legs, which it manipulated so cleverly that they seemed 
to be arms furnished with hands. It first rubbed the two 
front feet deliberately together, as though in the aft of 
washing them ; then taking its head between these same 
feet, it turned it rapidly half round in one direction, and 
immediately after half round in the other. Then followed 
a second imaginary washing, after which attention was 
dire6led to the hindermost feet, which were taken up 
singly by the front ones, and carefully rubbed over as 
though the insect were having its boots polished. The 
thorax and back then came in for their share of stroking, 
the legs moving apparently in all directions and being per- 
fectly articulated. To this a curious rubbing process suc- 
ceeded, the front legs being crossed, and the body rapidly 
struck or brushed, much in the same manner as that in 
which an English cabman, on a cold day, may be seen 
beating his body with his arms to promote circulation of 
the blood. Its favourite action, however, was the raising 
and stroking of its two middle legs, done in the most 
methodical manner ; while, as a resting position, it placed 
usually the right fore leg, straightened out stiffly on the 
knee joint of the other fore leg, to act, one might imagine 
