184 Mr. Hov's Account of 
line or thread, at the diftance of one inch and a half from the 
animal, appeared to be as fine as thofe {pun by the Aranea diadema, 
but nearer to its body it was thicker; and, at its-junétion to the 
tall, was broad and flat, exactly correfponding to the tail itfelf. 
The Slug was four feet below the branch. from which it was fuf- 
pended, and at the diftance of four feet and a half from the ground; 
to which it was approaching gradually at the rate of an inch in 
about three minutes, flower confiderably than its ordinary motion, 
either upon the ground, or even in afcending the trunk of a tree ; 
not fo flow, however, as one would expect, if it 1s confidered that a 
Slug is not furnifhed, like the infe&s above mentioned, with a par- 
ticular refervoir of glutinous liquid, from which the filk lines are 
 fpontaneoufly and almoft inftantaneoufly emitted; but that the 
line, by which it defcends, is drawn from that flimy, glutinous 
exudation gradually fecreted from its pores, and covering its whole 
body. It feemed to require a great degree of exertion in the animal 
to produce a continued fupply of this liquid, and to make it flow 
towards its tail. For this end it alternately pufhed out its head, and 
drew it back again below its fhield; turned it as far as poffible, firft 
to one fide and then to the other, as if thereby to prefs its fides, and 
fo to promote the fecretion. This motion of the head in a horizontai 
direction to one fide, made its whole body turn round; whereby 
the line by which it hung was neceffarily twifted, and from being 
flat became round. Befides, it might perhaps tend to draw off 
the glutinous matter, and thus lengthen the line; which could 
'fcarcely be effected merely by the weight of the Slug, although 
that was pretty confiderable, being between fixteen and feventeen 
grains. 
This Slug feemed to be of a fpecies between the Limax agre/his 
and favus. Linn. Its fpecific charaéter might be, 
Limax (flans) cinereus margine flavo. 
Perhaps 
