66 The Life of the Spider 



inexhaustible warehouse : the tree is bountiful ; 

 and the wind from the osier-beds gathers the 

 tiny flocks as they pour from the seeds. They 

 are easy to pick up. 



The difficulty is to set to work. How does 

 the bird proceed, in order to knit its stocking ? 

 How, with such simple implements as its beak 

 and claws, does it manage to produce a fabric 

 which our skilled fingers would fail to achieve ? 

 An examination of the nest will inform us, to a 

 certain extent. 



The cotton of the poplar cannot, of itself, 

 supply a hanging pocket capable of supporting 

 the weight of the brood and resisting the 

 buffeting of the wind. Rammed, entangled 

 and packed together, the flocks, similar to those 

 which ordinary wadding would give if chopped 

 up very fine, would produce only an agglomera- 

 tion devoid of cohesion and liable to be dis- 

 pelled by the first breath of air. They require 

 a canvas, a warp, to keep them in position. 



Tiny dead stalks, with fibrous barks, well 

 softened by the action of moisture and the air, 

 furnish the Penduline with a coarse tow, not 

 unlike that of hemp. With these ligaments. 



