52 The Life of a Spider 



business of motherhood than in the art of the 

 chase. The silk bag, the nest, in which the 

 Banded Epeira houses her eggs, is a much greater 

 marvel than the bird's nest. In shape, it is an 

 inverted balloon, nearly the size of a Pigeon's 

 ^^;g. The top tapers like a pear and is cut 

 short and crowned with a scalloped rim, the 

 corners of which are lengthened by means of 

 moorings that fasten the object to the adjoin- 

 ing twigs. The whole, a graceful ovoid, hangs 

 straight down, amid a few threads that 

 steady it. 



The top is hollowed into a crater closed with 

 a silky padding. Every other part is contained 

 in the general wrapper, formed of thick, compact 

 white satin, difficult to break and impervious 

 to moisture. Brown and even black silk, laid 

 out in broad ribbons, in spindle-shaped patterns, 

 in fanciful meridian waves, adorns the upper 

 portion of the exterior. The part played by 

 this fabric is self-evident : it is a waterproof 

 cover which neither dew nor rain can pene- 

 trate. 



Exposed to all the inclemencies of the weather, 

 among the dead grasses, close to the ground, the 



