SCARAB.EUS CARNlKEX. J)7 
fill purposes. In September they lay 
their eggs, and place each of them in a 
ball of fresh dung : they form these balls 
with surprising assiduity, and then dig 
holes three feet deep in the ground to 
deposit them — a laborious operation, in 
which they work in concert : they after- 
wards assist each other in a singular man- 
ner to roll them along, moving back- 
wards, and mutually shoving the balls 
with their hind feet. 
Lucy. How wonderful ! What pains 
the poor thing takes for the safety of its 
eggs ; as much as the moth that plucks 
off its own down to cover them. 
Motlier. In spring a large worm 
comes from each q^^, and makes its way 
to the surface of the ground ; when this 
worm has lived its proper length of time 
it changes to a pupa, and from that to a 
perfect beetle. 
Lucy, Then other insects, besides the 
moth and butterfly, pass through those 
changes ? 
Mother, There are very few insects 
F 
