The party had paused on the street near the beach to hear the account; and the doctor pointed out a package of the cochineal, as an illustration of his subject. “The _cocus cacti_ is so called because it feeds on a certain kind of cactus, which has to be cultivated as the food of the insect. The production of cochineal was carried on in Mexico, which is the country of the cactus, long before it was known to Cortes or any other European. Only the female insect is used in the manufacture of the color. The male has wings, but the female has none.” “That’s so that they cannot go gadding about,” added Scott. “Very likely; for the female fastens herself to a plant; and this branch is cut off with the creature upon it. The laborer forms a sort of soft nest on the cochineal plant; and, when the mother has been placed on it, she lays her eggs. The young when hatched spread themselves over the plant, feeding upon it, till they are in condition for use. As the insect produces several crops of eggs in a year, the young are soon ready to lay eggs; but they must be killed before they are in condition to do this, or it would injure the quality of the cochineal. The branch on which the insects are gathered is cut, and plunged into boiling water, in order to kill them. They are then collected and dried; and in this condition it takes seventy thousand of them to make a pound of cochineal.” “Then it is the corpses of these bugs that is used to put the red streak into a stick of peppermint candy,” added Scott. “Such is the fact; and it may cure you of the tendency to eat candy.” “I think not, sir; for I can stand it if the corpses can,” answered Scott. “We will walk up into the town,” continued the doctor, leading the way. “The houses are very pretty,” said Sheridan, as he noticed the extreme whiteness of all the buildings. “They are built of stone, and whitewashed.” “Just as they serve erring office-holders at home.” “They can’t make them white as these houses are.” “Creation! there is a woman that looks like a squaw of a band of travelling Indians!--stove-pipe hat and all!” exclaimed Scott. “There is another with a load on her head.” “The women are the principal beasts of burden in Teneriffe. They walk twenty miles in from the country, with a load of market-stuff on their heads,” added the doctor. There was nothing very peculiar about the costume of the woman, except the hat, and a sort of cloth thrown over the head, and worn under the hat, which dropped over the arms and shoulders, like a shawl. The lower class of men wore short trousers, the front covered with goat-skin, a short jacket, and gaiters over their shoes. Many carried a staff as tall as the arm-pits. There were a few beggars about the streets, as there are in all Spanish towns; and their costume is as miscellaneous as those in Spain wear, except that the cloak is not endurable in this warm climate.