The Life of Jean Henri Fabre 



est and most joyful periods of his life, rather 

 than to localise observations or circumstantial 

 experiences. 



There is, however, one of these reminis- 

 cences which, despite the extreme sobriety of 

 the characteristics recorded, denotes, in the 

 youthful entomologist, a mind peculiarly at- 

 tentive to the slightest indications and the 

 least movements of his future clients of the 

 animal world. It deals with the Spider, 1 

 that ill-famed creature whom all hasten to 

 crush underfoot as an odious and maleficent 

 insect, but which the entomologist holds in 

 high esteem for its talents as a spinner, its 

 hunting expedients, and other highly interest- 

 ing characteristics. The author has just ex- 

 plained, on behalf of the poor, supposedly 

 poisonous insect, that for us its bite has no 

 serious results, producing less effect than the 

 bite of a gnat: " Nevertheless, a few are to 

 be feared; and foremost among these is the 

 Malmignatte, the terror of the Corsican 

 peasantry." 



By good fortune the only Tarantula that 

 bit him in Corsica was the Tarantula of nat- 

 ural history. 



But while he was not injured by the spiders, 



1 Souvenirs, I., pp. 178-180. The Life of the Spider, 

 chap, ii., "The Black-bellied Tarantula." 

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