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A PLEA FOR THE SPIDER. 



Possibly the moral of that tragic poem, 

 beginning : 



"'Will you walk into my parlor?' 

 Said the spider to the i\y." 



which was formerly impressed on the 

 mind of every well-regulated child, is 

 partly responsible for the abhorrence with 

 which members of this ill-fated race are 

 viewed. Whether our methods of ob- 

 taining a livelihood are so superior as to 

 warrant such intolerance might be ques- 

 tioned, but certain it is that spiders have 

 long been the victims of persecution. Out 

 of doors the birds lie in wait for them ; 

 within, the housekeeper's broom is in 

 readiness, and not only are their webs 

 torn down as soon as spun, but they are 

 fortunate if they escape with their lives. 

 No ones takes their part but the natural- 

 ist, and he goes about armed with a bot- 

 tle of alcohol, into which he pops any un- 

 fortunate specimen he chances to ad- 

 mire. 



Naturally, spiders in general are timid 

 and retiring in disposition, keeping as 

 much out of sight as possible. Yet they 

 are by no means an insignificant race. 

 One page of mythology is devoted to 

 their origin. Tradition states that many 

 centuries ago there lived a maiden so 

 distinguished for her skill in the arts of 

 weaving and embroidery that she scorned 

 to be called less expert than Minerva her- 

 self. That goddess took the form of an 

 old woman, and, descending from Mount 

 Olympus, called on Arachne and re- 

 proved her for her boasts and impiety. 

 Arachne haughtily replied that she would 

 challenge even the goddess to compete 

 with her. Although taken somewhat 

 aback when Minerva dropped her dis- 

 guise, she refused to retract and the trial 

 began. 



Arachne chose for the subject of her 

 embroidery scenes drawn from stories re- 

 lating the faults and errors of the gods. 

 These were beautifully executed, but 

 Minerva's were still finer, and poor 

 Arachne, filled Avith shame and despair, 

 attempted to destroy herself. ]\Iinerva, 

 seeing her hanging from a tree, com- 

 manded her to continue to hang as a 



warning to future generations. Imme- 

 diately she began to grow smaller and 

 smaller ; her fingers attached themselves 

 to her sides as legs and she ran off across 

 the ground, a little black spider. 



Her descendants are named Arachnida 

 from their ancestor, and the curse still 

 clings to them, for they remain hanging. 

 They do not seem to object to the posi- 

 tion, however, having become used to it. 



They all possess her wonderful powers 

 of spinning and weaving. No human 

 artificer can compete with the fineness 

 and beauty of their webs ; hundreds of the 

 strands joined together not equaling in 

 size a human hair. 



The early life of a spider has some- 

 thing of the tragic about it. The infant 

 Arachnida are enclosed in a nest, which, 

 however soft and silken it may be, still 

 effectually keeps them confined. As they 

 thrive and grow it becomes probable that 

 the "survival of the fittest" is the rule in 

 their case. Yet their parent is not un- 

 motherly, for she stays to guard her off- 

 spring, not seldom losing her life in their 

 defense. 



This time of trial being past and the 

 little prisoners released, they begin to 

 take an active part in the world. Like all 

 children, they outgrow their clothes, but 

 new ones are less a problem than in some 

 families. When Master Arachnida finds 

 his coat too small he siinply withdraws 

 into retirement while he splits it open, 

 throws it off and discovers another al- 

 ready grown underneath. 



As soon as they are old enough the 

 young Arachnida set up housekeeping for 

 themselves. According to spider eti- 

 quette it is the female part of the com- 

 munity which does the work, while the 

 masculine gentry live at their ease. The 

 former first take care to provide for their 

 sustenance by spinning a web and then 

 proceed to build a house. With some 

 this is a very dainty affair, the soft cup- 

 shaped dwelling looking comfortable 

 enough. Others, still more aristocratic, 

 build quite extensive houses for them- 

 selves, plastering them on the outside, 

 lining them with silken tapestries and 



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