TARANTULA. 



very large, and of a fine fhining black ; they are continually 

 in motion, and, when fccu in tlic night, or in a dufky place, 

 they ihinc like the eyes of a cat. In the place where the 

 mouth is placed in other animals, there ariles in this a black 

 hard forceps ; the upper part of this inllriiment is covered 

 with a yellow hairinefs, and it is terminated by extremely fine 

 and (harp claws, which tiie creature can open or clofe up at 

 plcafure. While the arms hold the prey in a proper pofi- 

 tion, thefe (harp points make wounds in the body, and the 

 other parts of the forceps fqueczc the body till all its juices 

 are preffed out, and the creature feeds on them : the mouth 

 is placed much below thefe, and ftands exaftly in the proper 

 place to receive the juices exprefled by this operation. The 

 tarantula (Iccps in his cave tlie whole winter, and a great 

 part of the autumn and fpring ; and if during this time he 

 is ploughed up, as is often tlie cafe, or is any other way 

 taken out of his hole, he is found quite torpid and numbed, 

 and is unable to do any mifchief by biting. 



The hole or mouth of a tarantula's cave always gives 

 fome idea of the fize of the creature witliin : he makes it 

 fmall if he enters it wliile young ; and as he grows larger, 

 he eats away more and more of the earth to widen it ftill 

 more, fo that the diarneter of it is ufually about equal to 

 the diameter of the botly. The fize of a chefnut is about 

 the llandard of a full-grown tarantula ; but there are fome 

 old ones found much larger and more hairy. The female is 

 known from the male by having longer legs and a larger 

 belly. They copulate in June and July, and at that fea- 

 fon the females are often met witli in the fields carrj'ing the 

 males upon their backs. In Auguft and September they lay 

 their eggs, which remain the whole winter ; and in the fum- 

 mer after are hatched. 



Pliny tells a ftory of the young ones always eating up 

 their motlier for the firft food, which is countenanced by 

 the relation of the peafants in tliofe parts, who fay that they 

 all fwarm about her and fuck her juices from many places at 

 "once, till they leave her a lifelefs carcafe on the field, and 

 then go each their fevcral ways in fearch of other food. The 

 bite of the tarantula, as it is called, is' not properly a bite, 

 but a wound inflifted in a very peculiar manner. The crea- 

 ture pierces the (kin with its forceps, and at that inftant in- 

 jefts from its mouth a poifon into the wound. The time in 

 wluch their wounds are fatal, is that of their copidation ; at 

 this time they are in their utmoft vigour and power of hurt- 

 ing. People of falhion are rarely hurt by them, but prin- 

 cipally the poor labourers, who deep half naked in the field, 

 and the women wlio travel the country with naked feet, ga- 

 thering medicinal herbs. 



The bite occafions a pain, which at firft feems much like 

 that felt on the flinging of a bee, or an ant : in a few hours 

 the patient feels a numbnefs, and the part affefted becomes 

 marked with a little livid circle, which foon after rifes into 

 a ver)' painful tumour ; a httle after this he falls into a pro- 

 found fadnefs, breathes with much difficulty, his pulfe grows 

 feeble, and his fenfes fail ; at length he lofes all fenfe and 

 motion ; and dies, unlefs relieved. But thefe fymptoms 

 come fomewhat differently, according to the nature of the 

 tarantula, and the difpofition of the patient. An averfion 

 for black and blue ; and, on the contrary, an afFcftion for 

 white, red, and green ; are other of the unaccountable fymp- 

 toms of this difeafe. 



AU the affiftance medicine has been able to difcover by 

 reafoning, confifls in fome chirurgical applications on the 

 wound, and in cordials and fudorifics ; but thefe are of httle 

 efficacy : a thing that avails infinitely more, is, what reafon 

 «ould never have difcovered — mudc. 



As foon as the patient has loft his fenfe and motion, a 

 mufician tries feveral tunes on an inftrument ; and when he 

 has hit on that, the tones and modulations of which agree 

 with the patient, he is immediately feen to make a faint mo- 

 tion : his fingers firft begin to move in cadence, then his 

 arms, then his legs, by degrees his whole body ; at length 

 he rifes on his feet, and begins to dance ; his ilrength and 

 activity ftill increafing. Some will continue the dance for 

 fix hours without intermiffion. 



After this he is put to bed, and when he is judged fuffi- 

 ciently recruited from his firft dance, he is called out of bed, 

 by the fame tune, for a fecond. 



This exercife is continued for feveral days, fix or feven at 

 leaft ; in which time the patient finds himfelf exceedingly 

 fatigued, and unable to dance any longer ; which is the cha- 

 ratleriftic of his being cured ; for as long as the poifon afts 

 on him, he would dance, if one pleafed, without any dif- 

 continuance, till he died of the mere lofs of ftrength. 



The patient, on this, perceiving himfelf weary, begins 

 to come to himfelf ; and awakes as out of a profound deep ; 

 without any remembrance of what had paflTed in his pa- 

 roxyfm, not even of his dance. 



Somefimes the patient, thus recovering from his firft ac- 

 cefs, is quite cured ; if he be not, he finds a melancholy 

 gloom hanging on him ; he fhuns the fight of men, and 

 feeks water ; and, if he be not carefully looked to, throws 

 himfelf into fome river. If he do not die, the fit returns 

 at that time twelvemonth, and he is driven to dancing again. 

 Some have liad returns regularly for twenty or thirty years. 



Ever)- tarantula has his particular and fpecific tune ; but, 

 in the general, they are all very briflc, fprightly ones, that 

 work cures. 



This account was given in the Royal Academy of Sciences, 

 by M. Gepffroy, at his return from Italy, in 1702, and 

 confirmed by letters from F. Gouye. The like hiftory is 

 given by Baglivi, in an exprefs diifertation on the tarantiJa, 

 publifhed in 1696. 



Authors are divided about the nature of the poifon of 

 the tarantula. Cardan fays it is a cold one, and Scaliger 

 fays it is a hot one ; but, be this as it will, Valetta informs 

 us, that its effett is verj' fudden ; it is no fooner received 

 into the flefii, but the veins take it up and carry it to the 

 heart, where it becomes diffufed through the whole mafs •£ 

 blood, and gives an immediate trembUng of the limbs, and 

 a difficulty of breathing. The next part it feizes is the 

 brain, where it produces different effetls in different fub- 

 jeAs ; and, according to their ilate of liealth, and the con- 

 dition of their juices, brings on various fpecics of phrenfies. 

 The patient fees a thoufand phantoms, fometimes all jovial 

 and merry ones, and fometimes imaginary fcenes of blood 

 and cruelty. Some are fond of feeing httle ftreams of wa- 

 ter trickling down into a bafon ; others are never eafy un- 

 lefs they have green leaves before them . this indeed is almoft 

 an univerfal fymptom. Some are delighted with various 

 colours, and fome are fond of violent motion, fuch as danc- 

 ing, leaping, and the like ; and fome are in love with flow 

 and graceful movements, as walking majeftically, bowing, 

 and dancing flow dances. Some are military mad, and call 

 out for the noife of drums and trumpets, and the clafhing 

 of fv.'ords ; but all of them, as well the brifk and noify, as 

 the lethargic and dull, are pleafed with mufic. 



They will get up and dance to any inftrument ; and the 

 moment it ceafes playing, they will fall down to the groimd 

 as if apopleftic, and not ftir again till the mufic is renewed. 

 Many people have laughed at the whole hiftory of the bite 

 of a tarantula, from this one accident of its poifon being 



cured 



