50 



Before the spiders begin to spin, they apply more or 

 fewer of the large nipples t> the body whence the 

 web is bogun. And as they apply them more or less 

 strongly, more or i'ewer of the smaller nipples ceme 

 to touch : and accordingly the whole thread will be 

 compounded of more OF fewer single threads. One 

 .compound thread frequently consists of fifteen or six- 

 teen single ones. 



Their threads are of two kinds, one serves only for 

 the web with which they catch flics. The other is 

 K)uch thicker and stronger, in which they wrap up 

 their eggs, in order to shelter them from (he cold, as 

 well as from devouring insects. These threads they 

 -wind loosely round, resembling the balls of silk- 

 worms that have been loosened for the distaff. 



The balls are grey at first, but turn blackish when 

 Jong exposed to the air. From these balls a silk is 

 made, nothing inferior to the common silk* It takes 

 all kind of dyes, and may be made into all kinds of 

 stulfs. Only there is a difficulty in keeping the spi- 

 ders : for they are so extremely quarrelsome, that if a 

 hundred of them be put together, in a few hours 

 scarce twenty will be alive. 



5. Amazing wisdom is displayed in the make of the 



common spider. Sae has six teats, each furnished with 



innumerable lules. The lip of each teat is divided into 



numberless little prominences, which serve to keep 



the threads apart at their first exit, till they arehardoned 



by the air. In every teat, threads may come out at 



above a thousand holes. But they are fjrmed at a 



considerable distance, each of them having a little 



sheath, in which it is brought to the hole. In the 



belly are two little soil bodies, which are the first 



source of the s.lk. In shape and transparency they 



resemble glass and beads, and the tip of each goes 



winding toward the teat. From the root of each 



biad proceeds another branch much thicker, which 



also winds towards the saaie part. In these b.;adi 



and their branches is contained the matter of which 



tke silk i& formed, the body of the bead being a kind 



