The Sphex’s task is accomplished. I will finish mine by an examination of her weapon. The organ destined for the elaboration of her poison is composed of two elegantly branched tubes communicating separately with a common reservoir or pear-shaped vial, whence proceeds a slender channel leading to the axis of the sting and conducting to its end the little poisoned drop. The dart is extremely small, and not such as one would expect from the size of the Sphex, especially from the effect which her sting produces on crickets. The point is quite smooth, without the barbs found in the sting of the hive bee. The reason of this is evident. The bee uses her sting to avenge an injury only at the cost of life, the barbs preventing its withdrawal from the wound, and thus causing mortal ruptures in the viscera at the end of the abdomen. What could the Sphex have done with a weapon which would have been fatal the first time it was used? Even supposing that the barbed dart could have been withdrawn, I doubt if any Hymenopteron using its weapon, especially to wound game destined for its progeny, would be provided with one. For here the dart is not a fine gentleman’s weapon, unsheathed for vengeance, which is said to be the pleasure of the gods, but a very costly one, since the vindictive bee sometimes pays for it with life. It is a worker’s tool, on which depends the future of the larvæ, thus it should be one easily used in a struggle with captured prey, plunging into and coming out of the flesh without any delay—a condition much better fulfilled by a smooth blade than by a barbed one. I wished to ascertain at my own expense if the Sphex’s sting be very painful—that sting which knocks over robust victims with frightful rapidity. Well, I own with great admiration that it is slight and cannot be at all compared as to pain with those of the bee and the irascible wasp. It hurts so little that, instead of using pincers, I never hesitated to catch with my fingers any Sphegidæ which I wanted for my researches. I may say the same of the various Cerceris, Philanthides, Palares, and even of the huge Scoliides, whose very look is terrifying, and in general of all predatory Hymenoptera which I have been able to observe. I except, however, those that hunt spiders, the Pompili, and even their sting is far less severe than that of a bee.