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HOMES WITHOUT HANDS. 



the water. Trae, I might have fallen into the river, but I never 

 did ; and even had that accident occurred, it would have wrought 

 no harm, except wet clothes, for I could swim nearly as well as 

 the water-insects themselves. 



Close under the bank lived some creatures which always 

 interested me greatly. Spiders they certainly were, but they 



WATER SPIDER. 



appeared to have the habits of the water-beetle — coming slowly 

 to the surface of the water, giving a kind of flirt in the air, and 

 then disappearing into the depths, looking like balls of shining 

 silver as they sank down. I had been familiar with these 

 creatures for years before I met with them in some book, and 



