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HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE- GOSSIP. 



THE SPIDER AND THE LIZIRD. 



I "WAS, one day lately, walking in the fields wlien, 

 being weary, I laid myself on the grass in sucb 

 a position that, my head jnst sur mounting the crest 

 of a hillock, I could watch with ease all that passed 

 on the other side without exposing myself to view. 

 I was thus enabled to look across the grass, and my 

 eyes wandered over the tortuous labyrinth and the 

 tufts of herbage. I saw the ants pass and repass 

 in the forest of flowery turf. I saw numerous Pen- 

 tatomes, variegated like so many harleauins, pur- 

 suing the Cliyrsomeles, more brilliant than jewels. 

 I followed with my eyes the Brachinus and Har- 

 palus seeking the protection of the flints that 

 strewed the ground ; and I heard the crickets as 

 they sat, each at his threshold, singing their songs 

 to the sun. 



When I compared myself with all this tiny world, I 

 was positively frightened at my colossal proportions 

 and the vastness of my limbs. It seemed to me as 

 though my head had the dimensions of a house ; 

 my eyes were two great windows ; and my 

 body, as it lay extended OA'er the turf, seemed to 

 cover a country, which could be measured only by 

 leagues ! 



I was occupied with these fautatic thoughts, when 

 my eyes were suddenly arrested by the appearance 

 of a large spider, which issued like a spectre from 

 the bosom of ihe earth. At first I saw a kind of lid, 

 about the size of a small halfpenny, slowly raise it- 

 self abovethesurfaceof thesoil; then somelong hairy 

 legs stretched themselves out from a tube which the 

 lid had previously covered with the utmost exact- 

 ness. It seemed as though a fearful phantom were 

 liftiug the rocky cover of its tomb in order to strike 

 with sudden horror the conscience of some great 

 criminal. However, I felt that I had notliing to 

 reproach myself with in reference to the world of 

 spiders ; so far, therefore, from recoiling from the 

 sight before me, f set myself to examine the matter 

 with eager attention. 



The apparition was that of a Trap-door Spider 

 {Mygale ccenieniand), a species widely spread over 

 the South of Prance, which exhibits in its name the 

 wonderful instinct by which it is marked. In fact 

 the Mygale excavates for itself in the soil a deep 

 and spacious gallery, the entrance of which it closes 

 by means of a veritaljle door, which it is imjiossible 

 to open except by pushing it from the inside. This 

 door, composed of hardened particles of clay held 

 together by silken threads, which the animal itself 

 secretes, is very thick and solid. A silken hinge 

 liolds it in place and fixes it to one side of the gal- 

 lery ; on the other side there is neither lock nor 

 bolt, all the ingenuity of the spider not having yet 

 reached to these additional modes of defence, the 

 want of which in this particular instance very 

 licarly cost the inmate her life. 



Squatting under the lid, which rested on her back 

 as she lay half out of the tube, the spider eag- 

 erly watched every movement of a delicate Lace- 

 wing fly, which stalked lazily over the gilded petals 

 of a trefoil. Tiie wings of this lovely insect, so thin 

 and transpareat that one might believe them to have 

 been worked by fairy fingers, reflected the glorious 

 hues of Iris herself in the sun's bright ray, and as they 

 glistened in the spider's eight dark eyes, evidently 

 did but rouse more strongly her ferocious desires. 

 Indeed the hairy spinner fairly trembled with excite- 

 ment and impatience as the graceful fly moved 

 slowly toward the den, dark and cold as the grave, 

 where the spider lay in ambush. In another mo- 

 ment it walked into the very jaws of death, when 

 I heard a slight crackling in the dry herbage, 

 and then with a suddenness which made me start, a 

 bright green lizard dashed from a tuft of grass and 

 bounded toward the spider. Though quite taken 

 by surprise, the latter had just time to avoid the 

 fatal stroke by drawing back with a rapidity at 

 least equil to that of her enemy, and violently 

 closing the lid of her gallery. So near, however 

 was the lizard to seizing his prey, that the toes 

 of the right fore foot were actually caught 

 between the door and the s-ide of the tube, and 

 vain were the reptile's efforts to disengage itself, 

 though it twisted its lithe body fiom side to side 

 like one possessed. 



Had the spider been able to close the gate of the 

 castle with stout bolt and bar, never would our 

 lizard have boasted of another victory over spider 

 or insect : it must have perished miserably of hun- 

 ger and exhaustion ! Meanwhile it strove hard to 

 raise the lid with its muzzle, and failing in this after 

 several attempts, it managed in the course of its 

 struggle to insert the end of its tail into the slight 

 opening made by its foot. Then for the first time 

 I could see the wretched spider doubled up against 

 the wall of its den and holding on with all its might 

 by means of his claws, to the inner face of the silken 

 door, which, however, was gradually yielding to 

 the efforts of the enemy. I thought it right, there- 

 fore, to put a stop without delay to the unequal 

 combat. No sooner thought, than done. Prom the 

 summit of the hillock, on wdiich my chin was rest- 

 ing, I emitted a loud brrrrrr ! In a second, as once 

 with the great god, Jove — 



" O'.ympus trembled at my nod ! " 



The frightened lizard, in the energy of despair, 

 tore its foot fiom the trap, with the loss of two or 

 three toes, and bounding into the gra=s disappeared 

 from view. Mygale as instantly closed her gate 

 without ofi"ering me a single expression of gratitude 

 for the good turn I had done her ; while I, starting 

 to my feet, continued my walk, pondering on the 

 curious scene of which I iiad been a witness. 



A. Roger. 



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