head of the male, while his left arm was
around her neck. Mr. Rust watched intently to see whether the embrace
was one of war or for copulation. It proved to be both. As the two
abdomens began to approach each other the female made a ferocious attack
upon the male, greedily devouring his head, a part of the body, and all
the arm that had encircled her neck. A moment after the eating began,
Mr. Rust observed a complete union of the sexual organs, and the eating
and copulation went on together. On being forcibly separated the female
exhibited signs of fear at her headless mate, and it was with difficulty
that they were brought together again. On being suddenly tossed upon the
back of the female the male seized her with a grasp from which she could
not extricate herself, and immediately the sexual union was renewed, to
all appearances as perfectly as before.

The pair were accidentally killed, otherwise, Mr. Rush thinks, the
female would have continued her cannibalistic repast until she had
devoured the entire body of her companion.

This peculiarity of the mantis seems not to have been observed before,
though their mutually destructive disposition has been noted by several.
Desiring to study the development of these insects, M. Roesel raised a
brood of them from a bag of eggs. Though plentifully supplied with
flies, the young mantis fought each other constantly, the stronger
devouring the weaker, until but one was left.

M. Poiret was not more successful. When a pair of mantis were put
together in a glass they fought viciously, the fight ending with the
decapitation of the male and his being eaten by the female.

* * * * *

VARIEGATION OF LEAVES.

BY JAMES HOGG.

At the meeting of the Association of Nurserymen in Chicago, last July,
one of our prominent horticulturists described leaf variegation as a
disease. Incidentally this brought up the question: Does the graft
affect the stock upon which it is inserted?

Much confusion of ideas exists upon this subject, largely due to a loose
application of the term disease. Strictly speaking, this term is only
applicable to that which shows the health of the plant to be impaired.
It should be distinguished from aberrant or abnormal forms, for these
are not necessarily indicative of disease. Nobody thinks of saying that
red or striped roses are diseased because they are departures in color
from the white flower of the type species; or