[3] A light opera, with music by Victor Masse and libretto by Jules Barbier and Michel Carré (1852).—Translator’s Note. [↑]
“Ah, how sweet is far niente,
When round us throbs the busy world!”
[5] ·11 to ·15 inches.—Translator’s Note. [↑]
[6] Close upon 9½ feet.—Translator’s Note. [↑]
CHAPTER II
THE SACRED BEETLE: THE PEAR
A young shepherd, who had been told in his spare time to watch the doings of the Sacred Beetle, came to me in high spirits, one Sunday, in the second half of June, to say that he thought the time had come to commence a search. He had detected the insect issuing from the ground, had dug at the spot where it made its appearance and had found, at no great depth, the queer thing which he was bringing me.