“Not at all,” answered the dragon fly. “They only send out their tongues. I send out my whole under lip. If you could only keep quiet you would not show your ignorance so plainly.”
Once more Ruth was snubbed, and the dragon fly continued:
Ruth looked the question she dared not ask.
“I’ll explain,” said the dragon fly, amiably. “Larva—that’s what I was at first—means mask, or something that hides you. You will find out in time, if you do not know now, that the larva of an insect is really a mask which hides its true form. The plural of the word is larvæ. Now pupa, plural pupæ, means baby. It is usually the state of sleep in which the larva lies after spinning its cocoon or cradle, but in my case it didn’t suit at all. Dragon flies, far from sleeping in the pupa state, seem to grow more active, and their appetites are larger. Indeed, I will say right here, everything that came my way, and was not too big, went into my mouth. In fact, I finally reached my limit and burst.”
“Gracious!” cried Ruth in a shocked tone. “How _did_ you get yourself together again?”
“Well, you see, the whole of me didn’t burst. I simply grew too big for my skin, or my pupa case, as the wise men call it, and it cracked right open. I was climbing on a water plant when this happened, for all at once I had felt a longing to leave the water and get to the open air. My first effort was to get rid of the useless old shell which still clung to me, but I had quite a tussle before I could do so, and afterward I was very weak and tired. But the result was worth all my labour, for I found myself with these four wings, and the rest of my beautiful body, and I needed only to dry myself before sailing away on the wind, the swiftest thing on wings, and the most renowned mosquito killer on record. Of course, my legs aren’t arranged for walking. Why should they be? All six of them go forward, as if they were reaching for something, and so they are, reaching for something to eat. Woe betide any insect I start after. I catch him every time. I ought to, for I have thousands of eyes, and I can fly forward, backward, or any old way. I never stop to eat my dinner either. I hold it, and eat it as I go. Now if I had time, I would tell you how the children of Japan make a holiday, and go out to catch us for pets, and how they sing pretty songs to us and——”