Building the Web 203 



it from her wire-mill with the combs attached to 

 her hind-legs. This preparatory work presents 

 no appearance of a concerted plan. The Spider 

 comes and goes impetuously, as though at ran- 

 dom ; she goes up, comes down, goes up again, 

 dives down again and each time strengthens the 

 points of contact with intricate moorings dis- 

 tributed here and there. The result is a scanty 

 and disordered scaffolding. 



Is disordered the word ? Perhaps not. The 

 Epeira's eye, more experienced in matters of this 

 sort than mine, has recognized the general lie of 

 the land ; and the rope-fabric has been erected 

 accordingly : it is very inaccurate in my opinion, 

 but very suitable for the Spider's designs. What 

 is it that she really wants ? A solid frame to 

 contain the network of the web. The shapeless 

 structure which she has just built fulfils the 

 desired conditions : it marks out a fiat, free and 

 perpendicular area. This is all that is necessary. 



The whole work, for that matter, is now soon 

 completed ; it is done all over again, each 

 evening, from top to bottom, for the incidents of 

 the chase destroy it in a night. The net is as 

 yet too delicate to resist the desperate struggles 



