68 FLASHLIGHTS ON NATURE 



dart out upon them at once and make a meal off- 

 hand of her devoted admirer. 



Even the successful suitor himself is by no 

 means safe ; for it is Rosalind's way, when she 

 tires of a lover, not to nag and quarrel, but to 

 devour him outright, and look out for another. 

 This saves time and trouble, and is better in the 

 end for the temper of the species. 



When autumn comes, Rosalind lays her eggs in 

 a cocoon, and fastens them on the under side of 

 a stone or piece of wood, where they hatch out in 

 spring, and so the whole story of her life begins 

 over again. She herself, meanwhile, retires to 

 winter quarters, where she passes the cold months 

 under shelter in a state of more or less torpidity. 

 It is not known exactly how long a spider lives ; 

 but they continue for at least two or three years, 

 and probably much longer. We had Rosalind 

 under examination for two successive summers. 



The family to which Rosalind belongs, that of 

 the geometrical spiders, may be placed at the very 

 head of the whole spider order. Its webs are the 

 most perfect in architecture, are the best planned 

 as snares, and have a strict monopoly of the sticky 

 beads, which help to entangle the prey, and which 

 are also, under the microscope, most beautiful 

 objects, decked in prismatic colours, and looking 

 like so many iridescent opals. In shape and mark- 

 ings these spiders are also superior to the common 

 run of eight-legged beasts, though they are certainly 

 less beautiful than some of the lovely green and 

 variegated semi-transparent field-spiders. It would 



