216 INSBCT ARCHITECTURR. 



ness of the spider, nor can he spread a net over 

 a large surface, and issue from his citadel to seize a 

 victim which lie has caught in his outworks. He is 

 therefore taught to dig a trap, where he sits, like the 

 unwieldy giants of fable, waiting for some feeble one 

 to cross his path. How laborious and patient are 

 his operations — how uncertain the chances of success! 

 Yet he never shrinks from them, because his instinct 

 tells him that by these contrivances alone can he 

 preserve his own existence, and continue that of his 

 species. 



