i ee te le te a 
_ . eas a - — "* ia 
eal 
274. AMERICAN SPIDERS AND THEIR SPINNINGWORK. 
his legs, causing the veins to swell very much. We applied turnip poul- _ 
tice to the wound, and when this was taken off a quantity of black fluid 
came from the sore. During the afternoon the 
pain in the legs and big toes still continued. 
Dr. Mohnbeer prescribed a liniment, which, after 
rubbing well into the legs, caused a black, inky 
_ colored fluid to emit itself through the pores of 
the skin in large drops, from which time my 
son began to improye, and has continued im- 
proving ever since, but suffers much from weak- 
ness. From the time he was bitten on Mon- 
day till the Friday following he lost exactly 
twelve pounds in flesh. I forgot to state that 
when he was first bitten I gave him small 
doses of ‘brandy, at intervals during the first 
two days, which seemed to have the effect of 
greatly relieving the pain. 
“T am informed by Te Hemera, native chief 
Fic. 250. Latrodectus mactans, adult here, and also by 
female. Twice natural size.* other nativ es, that 
many fatal cases among their ranks have taken 
place by the bite of the katipo; they also be- 
lieve the sufferer is sure to die if they cannot 
find the spider; but, on the contrary, if they find 
it and burn it in the fire, the patient gets well in 
three days. If they cannot find the insect, they 
set fire to the house and burn buildings, effects, 
and everything else. In this case the spider was 
found, and Dr. Mohnbeer has it pre- 
served in spirits in his surgery. I 
write this to caution persons to look 
well to their bedclothes before retiring to rest, 
as I have witnessed persons suffering from the 
bite of snakes and other reptiles in Australia, 
but never saw any one in such agony as my son 
during the time the poison was taking effect.” 
Notwithstanding this very clear and appar- 
ently trustworthy account and the examples 
which follow, M. Lucas, a well known natural- 
ist, gives a testimony which is exactly the re- ,,,, sai eae iniaiade teats 
verse concerning the venomous effects of the Twice natural size. 
Native 
Notions. 
1 For this cut and the two next following I am indebted to the courtesy of the Secre- 
tary of the United States Department of Agriculture. 
