The Life of the Spider 



when in danger, runs quickly home ; she opens 

 the chink with a touch of her claw, enters and 

 disappears. The door closes of itself and is 

 supplied, in case of need, with a lock consist- 

 ing of a few threads. No burglar, led astray 

 by the multiplicity of arches, one and all alike, 

 will ever discover how the fugitive vanished 

 so suddenly. 



While the Clotho displays a more simple 

 ingenuity as regards her defensive machinery, 

 she is incomparably ahead of the Mygale in 

 the matter of domestic comfort. Let us open 

 her cabin. What luxury! We are taught 

 how a Sybarite of old was unable to rest, 

 owing to the presence of a crumpled rose-leaf 

 in his bed. The Clotho is quite as fastidious. 

 Her couch is more delicate than swan's-down 

 and whiter than the fleece of the clouds where 

 brood the summer storms. It is the ideal 

 blanket. Above is a canopy or tester of equal 

 softness. Between the two nestles the Spider, 

 short-legged, clad in sombre garments, with 

 five yellow favours on her back. 



Rest in this exquisite retreat demands 



perfect stability, especially on gusty days, 



when sharp draughts penetrate beneath the 



stone. This condition is admirably fulfilled. 



364 



