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which it is menaced causing it to desert its post. But as 
soon as it has been expelled from its dwelling, one would 
believe that it had lost all its vigour. It appears languid, 
benumbed, and if it makes some steps, it is only in a tottering 
manner. It is never seen of itself to issue forth from its 
habitation, and the light of day appears to be injurious to it. 
Olivier tells us that the mygale ariana , which belongs to the 
island of Naxos, remains constantly in its nest during the 
day, and never leaves it but at night. 
The Abbe Sauvages had discovered the mason-spider in 
the neighbourhood of Montpellier, on the edges of the 
roads, and the high banks of the small river of Lez. But the 
description which he had given of it was very insufficient. 
This defect, however, was supplied by Dorthes, in a memoir 
in the second volume of the Linnaean Transactions. 
Dorthes has added some observations to those of Sauvages. 
If the lid which closes the entrance be fixed with a pin, or if 
it be taken away, a new one is found to the aperture on the 
following day. It appears certain, that it is only by night 
that this animal plunders, and works at the construction of its 
abode. The bottom of this often contains debris of various 
insects, and even of tolerably large coleoptera. In August 
this spider attains its full growth, is disposed for coupling, 
and is most timid. Fecundity appears to change the cha- 
racter of the female ; become a mother in September, she no 
longer flees, but grows fierce and more voracious. The 
threads which she extends over the inequalities of the ground 
near her dwelling, procure her different insects for nutriment, 
and more especially diptera. She then lives in society with 
the male, and Dorthes has found thirty little ones in the 
nest. 
The Spiders proper (aranea) are almost all of them 
domestic. In the corners of neglected apartments, garrets, 
stables, &c., they spin large horizontal webs, which exactly 
