2o6 The Life of the Spider 



a speck ; it is now a little pellet, or even a small 

 cushion of a certain breadth. 



We shall see presently what becomes of this 

 cushion whereon the Spider, that niggardly 

 housewife, lays her saved-up bits of thread ; 

 for the moment, we will note that the Epeira 

 works it up with her legs after placing each spoke, 

 teazles it with her claws, mats it into felt with 

 noteworthy diligence. In so doing, she gives 

 the spokes a solid common support, something 

 like the hub of our carriage- wheels. 



The eventual regularity of the work suggests 

 that the radii are spun in the same order in 

 which they figure in the web, each following 

 immediately upon its next neighbour. Matters 

 pass in another manner, which at first looks like 

 disorder, but which is really a judicious contriv- 

 ance. After setting a few spokes in one direc- 

 tion, the Epeira runs across to the other side 

 to draw some in the opposite direction. These 

 sudden changes of course are highly logical ; 

 they show us how proficient the Spider is 

 in the mechanics of rope-construction. Were 

 they to succeed one another regularly, the 

 spokes of one group, having nothing as yet 



