THE BRUSH-FOOTED SPIDEE. 239 



to those of another, that a close personal acquaint- 

 ance would be hardly sufficient to determine the 

 species ; in such cases my custom has been to bring 

 home a specimen in a growing state, and suspend it 

 either within doors or without until the appearance 

 of its blossom should enable me to identify it. The 

 watching of the daily development of the plants, and 

 the pleasant suspense and expectation of what the 

 flower may turn out to be, are enjoyments that will 

 readily be appreciated by every one who has ever 

 cultivated a flower-garden. 



THE BRUSH-FOOTED SPIDER. 



A little way beyond Sabito Bottom, on the road 

 to Savanna le Mar, the ground slopes upward from 

 the sea-level to an elevation of about forty feet, and 

 is covered with a dense growth of timber trees. A 

 group of Ebby Palms {Acrocomia sclerocarpa), for- 

 midable from the long pointed spines with which 

 their trunks and the mid ribs of their spreading fronds 

 are armed, — grew along the sides of the highway, 

 and mark the approximation to a spot known as the 

 resting and roosting place of Boobies, Pelicans, and 

 Frigate birds. The deadly Manchioneel {Hippomane 

 mancinilla) grows abundantly in this belt of woods, 

 mingled with Button-wood {Conocarpus erectus), 

 Mahogany, Sweetwood {Laurus leucoxylon\ the sin- 

 gular Prickly-yellow, or Club of Hercules (Xan- 

 thoxylon clava-Herculis), horrid with bristling spines, 

 and many other trees. The wood bears the common 

 character of inpenetrability, being choked up with 



