HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



13 



were not in a state of starvation. Could they re- 

 plenish their larders by the capture of any flying 

 insects actually bred within their domain, and 

 which, being prisoners in the dark, and within a 

 limited space, would be likely to be caught? 

 Scarcely. The closet was almost empty— a few old' 

 bottles and jars, some pieces of wood of a variety of 

 sizes, and a debris of sawdust and other dust, the 

 accumulation of years, occupied the floor. This was 

 not likely to produce anything winged, save, 

 perhaps, a few Tine^:, the larvae of which might 

 feed on the wood, though the wings of no insect of 

 this sort appeared in the webs. Other living creatures 

 were not to be looked for, saving any of the small 

 wood-boring beetles and wood-lice, and these would 

 not be very likely to enter a spider's web, nor to 

 remain long in it if they did. The webs, I per- 

 eived, were regularly arranged in the angles on 

 each side of the door, which occupied almost the 

 entire width of the closet. Scarcely any webs were 

 situated in any other part of the closet, and this 

 seemed to suggest either that the spiders had 

 stationed themselves there with the expectation of 

 catching any visitants at their first entry, or else 

 that they themselves were accustomed to make ex- 

 cursions in search of food elsewhere, retiring to 

 these webs, which might be called "their homes," 

 at such times as they chose. This idea was favoured 

 by three circumstances ; first, that a portion of the 

 webs was occasionally unoccupied ; secondly, that 

 a sufficient gap was left, when the door was shut, 

 to allow the issue therefrom of a house spider of 

 average size; and thirdly, it is, I believe, a fact 

 that house spiders are not unfrequently to be found 

 wandering about, especially at night. With the 

 skill for which these creatures are so noteworthy, 

 the habitants on each side of the door had adapted 

 their webs to the space at their disposal. On one 

 side, where there was a width of several inches, 

 the webs were largish and irregular ; on the other, 

 the quarters being narrow, they were small and 

 almost triangular. Here also they were more 

 numerous, and their close proximity to each other, 

 and the few spiders to be seen on this side, as 

 compared with the other, might indicate that two 

 or three of these were constructed by the same 

 spider. 



The long seclusion enjoyed by these indi- 

 viduals now experienced an interruption. I 

 paid several visits at short intervals to observe 

 somewhat of their economy. I found that several 

 of those near the opening of the door (where the 

 narrow space was) extended a portion of web 

 across the door, so as in this way, to give them- 

 selves a chance of catchiug any insect which might 

 crawl through. These being severed, were speedily 

 renewed, even in the space of a few hours. My 

 examinations were repeated, with the view chiefly 

 of ascertaining what captures were actually made 



by the spiders in this situation, though at this 

 season (November) it was doubtful whether they 

 would secure much prey, and their summer victims 

 had evidently been entirely demolished. The deposit 

 of dust upon most of the webs was considerable, 

 proving their antiquity— I assume that the life of a 

 spider may be prolonged through several years — 

 and also making it evident that any crawling 

 creature would have very little difficulty in making 

 its escape from them, a tolerably good foothold 

 being thus afforded. Scarcely a web also was with- 

 out a rejected skin of the tenant, and some con- 

 tained two or three. Specimens of the domestic fly 

 are not very easily picked up in November ; but, 

 finding a plump one in lively condition, I placed it 

 in a web. The occupant looked at it with the sort 

 of bewildered astonishment that a person manifests 

 when he is suddenly informed that a thumping 

 legacy has been left him by a stranger, and, after 

 some consideration, walked up leisurely to it, and 

 secured it. The appearance of most of the spiders 

 did not indicate at all that they were in a starving 

 condition, though how they exist through the winter 

 is doubtful, I conjecture that within doors they 

 rarely become torpid, as appears to be the case with 

 most of our out-door species, both "hunters" and 

 "weavers." J. R. S. Clifford. 



MY CRASS. 



DO write, in Science-Gossip, about my Crass. 

 It was precious ' cheeky ' of you to say, when 

 you wrote in Land and Water about the Beaumaris 

 oyster-beds, that I wanted to pocket some of the' 

 oysters, but you may write about my Crass, 

 Mamma." 



The permission, offered in such a polite manner, 

 I am inclined to avail myself of, as I like to see 

 little boys take an interest in natural history ; but 

 the kind Editor of Science-Gossip may not con- 

 sider your Crass such wonderful members of scien- 

 tific society as you do, and refuse to give them a 

 place in his magazine. 



The '"' My Crass " alluded to are two enormous 

 specimens of the Bemodes crassicornis, or thick- 

 horned sea anemone, found on the shore near here. 

 One was brought me by a fisher lad ; the other was 

 found by my boy and a young friend of his, close to 

 the oyster-beds at the point, attached to a large piece 

 of stone. The boys, very wisely, did not attempt to 

 remove it from its moorings, but carried off between 

 them the miniature rock and all. It now stands in 

 my sitting-room, in the centre of a large brown pan 

 full of sea-water, which is constantly changed ; and 

 it affords no little amusement to its owner, I can 

 tell you, to watch its various transformations. 



I was called off from my work, yesterday morning, 

 to " see the big crab " that had suddenly put in an 



