THE INSECTS. 355 



creatures seem to have, while mounting, some locomotive 

 power without the use of wings, and to move in the air 

 faster than the air itself." 



The formation of these gossamer webs is, indeed, a 

 wonderful provision to enable these tiny aeronauts these 

 little creatures without wings to ascend into the upper 

 air for some specific purpose ; this end accomplished, they 

 are enabled by coiling these webs round their bodies again 

 to descend to earth. 



In early times gossamer was supposed to be " scorched 

 dew." Spencer says : 



" The fine nets which oft we woven see 

 Of scorched dew." 



Henry More, however, who wrote about 1640, suspected 

 that spiders were the cause : 



"As light and thin as cobwebs that do fly 



In the blew air, caus'd by the autumnal sun 

 That boils the dew that on the earth doth lie, 



May seem this whitish rag then is the scum ; 

 Unless that wiser men make 't the field spider's loom." 



