"bug" is applied with a certain propriety to
many insects which are not at all pleasant (although the Lightning Bug
is an exception), and we should therefore be very careful about giving
what has grown to be a bad name to insects that do not deserve it, and
should avoid treating such as if they were as ugly and disagreeable as
the name would seem to imply.

A BATTLE ON STILTS

[Illustration: A BATTLE ON STILTS.]

In the year 1748 the great Marshal Saxe, who was travelling through
the Low Countries, came to the town of Namur in Belgium. There the
citizens did everything in their power to make his stay pleasant and
to do him honor, and among other things they got up a battle on
stilts. These inhabitants of Namur were well used to stilts, for their
town, which has a river on each side of it, lay very low, and was
subject to overflows, when the people were obliged to use stilts in
order to walk about the streets. In this way they became very expert
in the use of these slim, wooden legs, and to make their stilts
amusing as well as useful they used to have stilt-battles on all
holidays and great occasions.

The young men of the town, two or three hundred on each side, would
then form themselves into opposing armies, and with flags flying and
trumpets blowing they would advance to the attack.

And they fought hard and well. It was against the rule to use any club
or similar weapon, or to strike with the fists. Punching with their
elbows, to push each other down, and kicking with their stilts, to
knock their opponents' legs from under them, were the methods of
assault in this kind of warfare.

The battle often lasted for an hour or two, the armies fighting and
shouting, advancing and retreating; while their wives and sisters
stood around them, encouraging them by shouts and hand-clapping, and
when an unfortunate fellow was knocked down, these women would hasten
to his assistance, and help him up again as soon as he had recovered
from his fall.

This was pretty rough sport, for the combatants fought as if their
lives and fortunes depended upon the victory, and although they did
not often seriously injure one another, there must have been many a
sore head and bruised leg and arm after the battle was over.

Marshal Saxe knew all about fighting, and on this occasion he
declared, that if two real armies should engage with as much fury as
these young fellows on stilts, the battle would be a butchery.

At another t