A Beast op^ Pkey 59 



like c'cl.Ljes ; and these curious saw-teeth are useful 

 to the spider l^otli in anauj^iiij^ lier \velis, in 

 weaving tliem ti^ht or loose, and in feeling the 

 line ot eonununication, when at rest, tor indica- 

 tions ot a captured insect. It you reuieinber that 

 the spider has no less than eij^ht le^s, each some- 

 what dilferently provided with special claws and 

 combs, you will understand how formidable a 

 beast she really is to creatures of her own size 

 or smaller. 



But beneath the foot in Xo. 5 are represented 

 those still more terrible orj^ans, the mouth and 

 poison-fan}4. The face is shown, end on — a full- 

 face portrait ; and the little knobs above are the 

 eij^ht sharp eyes with which the spider looks out 

 for its prey when captured. Below lie the jaws, 

 with their two movable poison-fanj^s, one of which 

 is open, while the other is folded back into its 

 j^roove or receptacle like a kitten's claw. This 

 poison-fan^ is supplied with venom from a ^land 

 in the head. When the spider catches an insect 

 and desires to eat him at once (as she <4enerallv 

 does if he is not very larj4e) she poisons him out- 

 right, and proc(.'eds to devour him. So she often 

 does with a wasp or other dangerous insect. But 

 if she wishes to preseive him for future use, she 

 quietly envelops him in a network of web, and 

 keeps him in durance vile, as I shall show you 

 later a prisoner awaitinj^ his turn to In- killed 

 and eaten. Taking lur as a whole, therefore, the 

 mother spider is about as lieicely i-cpiipped a beast 

 as creation can produce : a monster armed like the 



