well able to do so; in an ordinary
conflict he would meet force by force, and return bite for bite. His
strength would enable him to come well out of a struggle, but the
foolish creature allows himself to be devoured without retaliating. It
seems as though an invincible repugnance prevents him from offering
resistance and in turn devouring the devourer. This tolerance reminds
one of the scorpion of Languedoc, which on the termination of the
hymeneal rites allows the female to devour him without attempting to
employ his weapon, the venomous dagger which would form a formidable
defence; it reminds us also of the male of the Praying Mantis, which
still embraces the female though reduced to a headless trunk, while the
latter devours him by small mouthfuls, with no rebellion or defence on
his part. There are other examples of hymeneal rites to which the male
offers no resistance.

The males of my menagerie of Gardeners, one and all eviscerated, speak
of similar customs. They are the victims of the females when the latter
have no further use for them. For four months, from April to August, the
insects pair off continually; sometimes tentatively, but usually the
mating is effective. The business of mating is all but endless for these
fiery spirits.

The Gardener is prompt and businesslike in his affairs of the heart. In
the midst of the crowd, with no preliminary courtship, the male throws
himself upon the female. The female thus embraced raises her head a
trifle as a sign of acquiescence, while the cavalier beats the back of
her neck with his antennae. The embrace is brief, and they abruptly
separate; after a little refreshment the two parties are ready for other
adventures, and yet others, so long as there are males available. After
the feast, a brief and primitive wooing; after the wooing, the feast; in
such delights the life of the Gardener passes.

The females of my collection were in no proper ratio to the number of
aspiring lovers; there were five females to twenty males. No matter;
there was no rivalry, no hustling; all went peacefully and sooner or
later each was satisfied.

I should have preferred a better proportioned assembly. Chance, not
choice, had given me that at my disposal. In the early spring I had
collected all the Gardeners I could find under the stones of the
neighbourhood, without distinguishing the sexes, for they are not easy
to recognise merely by external characteristics. Later on I learned by