396 Mr. F. Enock 07i the 



ation, I found they had descended from their aerial 

 tunnel to the angle formed by the sand and side of the 

 pot, where they had formed several horizontal tunnels, 

 covered over with sand ; but how this was done had 

 long been a mystery to me, and to endeavour to solve it 

 I thought that possibly the tube was at first viscid, the 

 female forcing the excavated sand out at the top, which, 

 falling down, adhered to the silk, for I could hardly 

 believe that the spider came out and covered the outside 

 with sand, &c. ; but to prove this, I reset a large female 

 in a pot, leaving the end of the tube just level with the 

 ground ; I covered this with the lid of a small pill-box 

 the same size as the tube, then I covered the surrounding 

 sand with a layer of bright red brick-dust, and carefully 

 removed the lid, leaving the tube quite clean. During 

 the next night the female lengthened her tube three- 

 quarters of an inch ; and this was covered with black 

 sand, proving that it was done from the inside. But 

 yet this did not satisfy me as to Jiojv the sand was 

 affixed : however, the accident of leaving the pot con- 

 taining the young out all night was the means of 

 clearing up the mystery to my entire satisfaction, be- 

 sides enabling me to watch the young Atypns commence 

 life on its own account, by laying the foundations of its 

 future home. 



Shortly after I had brought the pot back to my room 

 the warmth caused all the Atypi to come out of their 

 sandy tunnel, and ascend to their aerial one. I then 

 took the pot out again into the cold, which had the 

 desired effect upon them, for they quickly descended to 

 the sand, evidently determined to select suitable sites for 

 their dwellings ; most of them entered the various 

 tunnels in the sand from which thej' had escaped but an 

 hour or two before, the rest walking round and round, 

 carefully examining any irregularity or small depression 

 in the sand. Two of them were much interested in a 

 minute piece of sandstone standing up at the side of the 

 pot, and one, after coming into contact with it three or 

 four times, appeared to finally settle that this bit of 

 sandstone would form a very good support for the end 

 of its tube, for it commenced moving its spinners from 

 it to the inside of the pot, and towards the tiny corner 

 formed by this sandstone. After weaving a silken carpet 

 of about a quarter of an inch long by one-eighth of an 



