Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1886-08-12
a SMART WASP.
Inc clever I'd Wonderful Maneuyers of q
Disreputable Creature.

ne Clever a I'd Wonderful Maneuvers of q
Disreputabie Creature.
There is not a man or boy but has his
wonderful. story to tell about his horse
or his dog or his cat. Some tell mar
Velous snake stories, others strain the
imagination with yarns about quail and
elk; others still addle the brain with lies
about fishes. Few persons have great
zeal to say about insects, yet it is in the
class OF insects, especially hymenopter-
Gus insects, that the searcher finds
strongest proofs of intelligence Among
the most familiar of this intellectual
tribe are the bee and the wasp. Every
oody can tell you about the former. of
its method of gathering and storing
money and its curious system of home
rule government, representation with
out taxation, etc. The writer has his
httle story OF wasp, a common black
wasp, closest of kin to the red fellow
that stings till it is weary, and first
cousin to the disreputable creature that
daubs mud all over the ceiling of vacant
rooms and along the rafters in earrets
Like most other good true stories this
one is vouched for by men of reputa
ton. 1t Is not exaggerated in the
least.
A few days ago two men who were
enjoying an outing came upon a green
worm which was slowly crawling across
the highroad. As the walkers reached
the creature they saw the aforemen-
toned black wasp swoop down upon it.
straddle it with its four legs, put it's
arms-or what were in the place of
nd fhn L
the head and proceed to sting it several
times, first in the right side, then in the
left. The worm writhed as if in great
pain and in its struggles to escape the
wasp suddenly flew away. The two
men sat down beside the road to await a
renewal of the strange conflict Soon
the attacking party reappeared, ignore
full of fight than before. 1t was a
pygmy lighting giant, but the little
creature with the sting had the advan-
tage of wings and agility and weapons,
and the worm soon showed signs of de-
feat After three more onsIaughts it
Strengthened out its pretty body, be-
came rigid, quivered and died. The
victor walked around the conquered foe
three times, and after making sure that
death was not feigned, disappeared.
After the space of a minute it return
ed and proceeded to straddle the worm
as at first, putting its arms about the
dead animal and lifting it bodily from
the ground. 1t was wonderful sight
The wasp was not more than three
quarters of an inch long, and its body
in the thickest place did not exceed one
sixth OF an inch through. The worm
was three and a half inches long and
one-third of an inch in diameter And
yet the wasp actually lifted it up and
partly dragging, partly carrying it.
crossed the dusty road and travelled for
some twenty PAGES through the stubby
grass and weeds. At length a small
clearing was reached and dragging its
burden to near the centre of the spot
the wasp dropped it and ran quickly
around the place as if in search of some
thing. The something proved to be
pebble the size of robin egg half
buried in the ground. Brushing the
loose earth away thetwasp cast the stone
aside, revealing in the ground hole
into which the smart creature dived
head foremost. 1t came up with an
armful of fresh earth and depositing it
an inch from the hole went back after
another and another until little mound
began to grow beside the front door of
the warriors castle. In an incredibly
1arged, and the mason, having taken |
the measurement of it, went to the |
dead worm to see if it would enter. |!
Satisfied, the insect caught the grub by !
the head and backing into the hole |
pulled the prey after it. But the worm /!
was too tight a fit, so out it came, the
wasp pushing it up with its head. A
little more digging. another measure
ment and again the worm was
drawn in, this time until only
half an inch remained above
ground. Was there another entrance
to the hole? How would the wasp get
out, or did it intend to remain below?
The creature put an end to doubts by
squeezing out of the same hole in which
the worm was SO tightly wedged. 1t
was hard Job, but successfully accom-
plished. Then began a iaughable but
ting process, in the course of which the
halfinch of worm above ground was
gradually driven into the whole. When
quite in the wasp sprinkled fresh earth
upon it, trampled it down carefully, re-
placed the pebble. drew some dry sur !
face earth around it, and then hermeti- /
cally sealed the hole. This sealing was
evidently done to keep away other in
scissor providers of any kind. The
wasp gathered from a certain weed close !
by something which it spread over the |
pebble. Repeated trips to the same
weed were made. for this purpose. and
though the substance so gathered was
invisible there was no doubt of its use.
While; the wasp was absent on one of !
these trips one of the men placed a
stick upon the now well-hidden hole. |
The impotence, not to say wrath, with !
which the insect tossed it aside BODIED |
no good ae any creature of reasonable !
size which might presume to interfere !
with the storehouse or burial ground. !
After the sealing, with one good look |
around the premises, this clever wasp |
spread its wings and disappeared, leav
ing those who had watched the work
manship unable to decide whether the |
fighter and mason was endowed with |
instinct or reason.-Rictanond ( Fa) |
. Cor. N. y Tribune.