Building the IVeb 205 



left, the top, the bottom ; she hoists herself 

 up, dives down, climbs up again, runs down 

 and always returns to the central landmark 

 by roads that slant in the most unexpected 

 manner. Each time, a radius or spoke is laid, 

 here, there, or elsewhere, in what looks like mad 

 disorder. 



The operation is so erratically conducted that 

 it takes the most unremitting attention to follow 

 it at all. The Spider reaches the margin of the 

 area by one of the spokes already placed. She 

 goes along this margin for some distance from 

 the point at which she landed, fixes her thread 

 to the frame and returns to the centre by the 

 same road which she has just taken. 



The thread obtained on the way in a broken 

 line, partly on the radius and partly on the 

 frame, is too long for the exact distance between 

 the circumference and the central point. On 

 returning to this point, the Spider adjusts her 

 thread, stretches it to the correct length, fixes 

 it and collects what remains on the central sign- 

 post. In the case of each radius laid, the surplus 

 is treated in the same fashion, so that the sign- 

 post continues to increase in size. It was first 



