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VOI..  XXXIV.  No.  ‘^1.1 
WIIOl.E  No.  1399.  J 
I'RICK  SI3t  CENTH 
«a.30  I’KR  YEAR. 
fRntered  according  to  Act  of  ConKroas,  In  the  year  1870,  by  the  Kural  PubllshinK  Company,  in  the  omco  of  the  lilbrarliin  of  ConKress  at  Washlnuton.j 
HOUSE  SPIDERS, 
froquonfc  rp|)f)(.ltioiiH  of  Uifi  Hfiiiio  Btory.  The 
peaaantH  of  Italy  liavo  a  mothoil  of  yetting  the 
Tarantula  otifc  of  hiu  hole  in  order  to  doatjoy 
him.  Their  plan  ia  tn  make  a  aoft,  hiaalng  noiae 
tJirotigh  a  ati  aw.  The  creature  la  attracted  by 
the  aonnd,  and  probably  Ibinking  aouio  liickleaa 
inaoct  ia  within  hia  reach,  iiaatena  to  aoizo  it, 
when  ho  meeta  Ida  huniaji  foe. 
Wonderful  atoriea  are  often  related  of  the  fe- 
rocioiianeaa  of  the  Tarantulaa  of  Toxaa,  the 
Mfjgalf  Hi-ntzi  of  natnraliata,  but  ao  far  aa  theae 
atoriea  aasort  that  the  Tarantula  ia  diapoaed  to 
attack  human  beinga,  we  act  tlieni  down  aa  tnero 
fancy  or  the  elfect  of  au  excited  imagination, 
although  wo  have  no  doubt  but  that  they  would 
bite  if  roughly  handled.  Hut  the  Tarantulaa 
havo  a  very  formidablo  and  deadly  foe  in  a  large 
and  powerful  Waap  known  aa  the  Pejms  foi'- 
inum  of  Hay.  Thia  Tarantula-killer  la  oiio  of 
the  many  apccioa  of  Dlgger-waapa  which  bury 
their  victima  in  holoa  in  tlie  earth  aa  food  for 
their  own  young  or  larvie.  Tho  Spidora  are 
atored  up  by  theae  Waapa  iti  a  paralyzed  atate, 
but  not  actually  killed,  and  8o  aoon  aa  tho  Waap 
oggH  hatch,  tlio  griiba  couuneneo  feeding  upon 
tho  impriaoned  Tarantulaa.  8omo  of  our  North¬ 
ern  BiHaues  of  Miid'WaapH  uai!  the  mnaller  Hpoeiea 
of  Spider  for  the  Haino  j»ur|<oBe,  and  tho  increase 
of  Bimters  ia  kept  in  chock  by  tho  uiuch-hated 
\N  . .  Many  a  boy  who  reada  tho  Ituu.VL  has 
probably  been  puzzled  to  know  Ijow  tho  Hpider 
came  in  tlie  Waap  notitB  which  ho  haM  found  at¬ 
tached  to  the  raftera  of  tho  barn  or  other  out¬ 
building,  and  what  tlmy  aro  put  there  for,  but 
by  carefully  looking  among  the  SpiderH,  a  Wasp 
egg  or  tho  grub  hatoiied  therefrom  can  usually 
bo  found,  and  this  will  explain  tho  mystery. 
Deor  family.  Tho  general  color  almve  ia  black¬ 
ish  or  ashy  gray,  and  yellowish  white  below. 
The  principal  foo<l  of  tho  Elk  in  winter  is  the 
twigs  of  trees,  and  they  aro  especially  fo!id  of 
those  of  the  maple  an(i  birch ;  but  in  summer 
they  fee<l  upon  tho  grasses,  in  addition  to  what 
they  niay  obtain  from  trees  and  shrubs. 
Tlie  flesh  of  the  Elk  is  not  as  fme-grained  or 
rich  as  that  of  tho  common  Deer,  still  tho  stalks 
are  juicy  and  often  tonder,  but  seldom  fat  like 
those  of  a  bullock. 
Elk  havo  been  frequently  domesticated,  but 
they  possess  no  merits  which  would  make  them 
more  desirable  than  the  farm  animals  generally 
in  use. 
I  HAVK  often  observed,  says  a  writer  in  the 
Gardener’s  Chronicle,  tho  jiowor  in  Gossamer 
Spiders  of  ejecting  forcibly  from  tho  spinners  a 
web  which  Ihoy  use  as  a  means  of  moving  from 
one  jdaco  to  anotlier.  I  was  not  a  ware  until 
lately,  however,  that  tho  samo  power  was  pos¬ 
sessed  by  tho  common  house  Spider. 
I  caught  one  of  these  tlio  other  day  for  tho 
purpose  of  finding  out  if  it  was  capable  of  eject¬ 
ing  its  web  by  muscular  elTort,  aud  I  propose 
giving  the  rosu.t  at  lengtli.  Having  placed  my 
Hpider  uiMUi  a  pencil  hold  between  my  linger  and 
thumb,  1  watched  him  carefully,  noting  all  hi.s 
movements.  Tho  sage  inscot  proceeded  doliber- 
ahdy  to  take  a  tour  round  his  soinowhat  limited 
quarters,  and,  finding  at  lengtli  tlial  ho  could  not 
escapo  hy  either  end,  ho  carefully  attaiihed  a  web 
to  the  pencil  and  descended  rapidly, 
I  wound  tho  w’oh  up  on  tho  pencil,  so  as  to 
prevent  him  reaching  tho  ground,  and  after  try¬ 
ing  the  same  plan  a  good  many  times,  ho  stop¬ 
ped  in  tho  middle  of  the  pencil,  and  apparently 
“took  a  big  think,"  the  result  of  his  meditation 
being  another  descent  of  about  a  foot  from  his 
sniiport.  IIo  then  gathered  himsolt  up  into  a 
little  ball,  elevating  his  abilomon,  aud,  much  to 
my  astonishment,  ejected  tho  wob  unconnected 
as  it  procoipLs  from  tho  spinner  to  the  distance 
of  about  a  foot,  when  tho  whole  converged  into 
a  focus,  aa  It  were,  forming  a  complete  web, 
which  continued  sailing  outward  until  it  attached 
itself  to  my  coat;  tho  Spider,  after  giving  the 
web  a  few  tuga,  then  passed  over,  and  so  es¬ 
caped.  Thinking  1  might  he  deoeived  as  to  tho 
web  coming  out  in  so  many  parts,  1  caught 
_  _  several  more,  and  ro- 
peahal  tho  experiment 
■  ■■  - ^1  about  a  dozen  tiinoa,  so 
_ that  there  can  bo  no 
_ doubt  as  to  tho  fact.  I 
sliall  be  glad  to  hoar 
-  ■“  ~  L  ,  _  that  some  one  else  has 
tried  tliis,  so  as  to  con- 
AMERICAN  ELK  OR  MOOSE 
(Alee  Amcricanus.) 
This  magnificent  animal,  which  was  formerly 
very  abundant  in  the  more  northern  of  tho 
Eastern  States,  is  rapidly  disappearing  before 
tho  constant  onslaughts  of  our  hunters.  In 
some  parts  of  the  West,  osiieci.ally  in  tho  more 
mountainous  regions  of  the  Northwestern  Terri¬ 
tories,  the  Elk  is  found  in  considorablo  mint- 
hers  ;  hut  sucli  noble  game  is  not  likely  to  long 
remain  unuiolcstcd  in  any  locality  where  the 
intrepid  huutsr  can  ixiSHibly  imnelrate  with  any 
degree  of  safety.  Hence  wc  frequently  hear  of 
a  terrific  slaughter  of  these  animals  by  men  who 
have  no  other  object  in  killing  them  than  to 
acquire  tho  name  of  being  good  sportsmen. 
Elks  live  in  tho  woods  in  the  northern  parts  of 
botli  couUncnl.s,  but  the  American  Elk  is  consid¬ 
ered  by  many  naturalists  as  a  distinct  species 
from  the  European.  The  true  American  Elk,  or 
Mouse,  as  it  is  called  in  some  localities,  i.s  tlie 
largerst  ahd  strongest  of  all  otlier  memhers  of 
tho  Deer  family,  po.ssessing  great  speed  and  re¬ 
markable  endurance.  A  full-grown  male  stanils 
about  uvo  feet  high  at  tho  shoulder,  measures 
seven  feet  from  the  noso  to  tho  tail,  and  weighs 
from  800  to  1,200  pounds. 
The  Elk  ia  rather  awkward  and  clumsy  in  ap- 
|)earauce,  but  when  seen  in  his  native  haunts  he 
di8])lays  a  certain  majesty  which  comiuaudri  ail- 
miration. 
The  horns  are  found  uixm  the  males  only  and 
require  five  years  for 
their  fuU  development,  f  ~ 
They  begin  to  grow  or  -  -.t  •.  ' 
sprout  in  early  spring,  . 
and  complete  their  an- 
Mual  increase  about 
midsnmmer.  Tho  first  - 
year  they  are  about  Z 
one  Incli  in  length  ;  tho  _  '^L 
second  year,  f o  u  r  to  fi  vo ;  - j|% 
then  they  commence  to  _ ^ 
divide,  foniiing  round  ^ __ 
forks  or  prongs ;  the 
fourth  aud  fifth  years 
they  become  palmated  in  ?<> 
form,  as  shown  in  our  ■ 
illustration.  Sometimes 
these  jialmatcd  antlers 
aro  a  foot  wide,  termi-  j  7  - 
nating  with  several  ' 
blmit  points.  The  horns 
aro  said  to  diminish  in 
size  after  the  animal  has 
passtid  the  period  of  its 
greatest  vigor.  In  ma-  - 
lure  and  vigorous  aui-  *  P  ”  i 
WihIs  the  horns  aro  shed  Av  Sj  M  | 
in  December,  but  the  tt  w 
young  males  often  re-  & 
tain  them  until  March. 
The  Moose,  as  they 
are  ufeually  called  in  the 
more  Northern  States, 
are  still  to  he  found  in 
Maine,  Canada,  Nova  VcJ  \  1.7 
Beotia  and  Labrador.  ,  \  \  |f  \ 
The  color  of  tho  hair  ^ 
of  these  animals  ia  some- 
what  difl’erent  in  differ-  ! 
ent  individuals,  so  much 
so,  indeed,  that  some  of 
the  *larker  eolorod  havo 
recei  ved  tho  name  of  the 
“  Amorican  Rlack  Elk 
but  tho  color  in  this  aui- 
mal  is  probably  no  more 
variable  than  that  of  —  — 
other  species  of  tho 
THE  TARANTULA 
The  Tarantula  ia  a  species  of  Hpider,  and  is 
said  to  havo  received  its  name  from  the  City  of 
Tarentnm,  in  Italy,  near  which  it  is  found  in 
great  abnndanoe.  But  there  are  many  Hiiecica 
of  those  large  Spiders,  some  of  which  inhabit  our 
Boiithem  States,  California  and  Mexico.  Wo 
liave  frequently  received  speoiinens  from  our 
corresponder  in  Texas,  some  of  groat  size,  their 
legs  tfj)rea«llng  fully  fivo  indies,  whidi  gives 
tliom  *  very  formidablo  appearance.  Tho  Amer¬ 
ican  aud  Enropoan  species  of  toe  'I'aruntula  are 
not  only  quite  itiniilar  in  appearatice,  hut  th(^'.r 
habits  also  aro  uoarly  tho  samo.  yAi.K'i'TA,  an 
Italian  monk,  who  hai.l  many  opisirtunilies  of 
obBcrving  these  Bpklers,  published  a  very  accu¬ 
rate  history  of  them  in  1700.  Tho  bito  of  tliose 
Spiders  i.s  reputed  to  bo  oxccedingly  poisouous, 
but  tbo  accounts  of  death  from  this  cause  ore 
probably  greatly  exaggerated  through  foar  aud 
PANGOLIN, 
This  curious  animal, 
cainrnonly  known  as  tho 
Scaly  Ant-oater,  is  a  na¬ 
tive  of  tho  old  world. 
It  has  a  long,  pointed 
snout,  hut  lias  no  teeth, 
but  has  a  preliensiio 
tongue,  with  which  it 
catdies  its  victims.  Tho 
Ant-oators  aro  found  in 
various  jiarts  of  Asia 
aud  Africa,  living  in 
holes  wliich  they  dig  in 
tho  ground.  Tho  largest 
species  i.**  tho  Short- 
tailed  Pangolin  (Manis 
Xfentadactyla,  Lis.\),and 
is  .1  to  1  feet  in  length, 
with  live  toes,.  Hence 
tho  specific  name.  Tho 
scales  aro  deep  brown- 
in  tho  adult  animal  and 
hard  enough  to  turn  a 
musket  -  ball.  Another 
apecioB,  tho  Long-tailed 
Pangolin,  M.  Uiradac- 
lyla,  found  in  Guinea, 
has  but  four  toes  aud  a 
much  flatter  tail,  which 
is  noa.ly  twice  as  long 
as  its  body.  From  tboir 
external  covering  aud 
shape,  tliey  resemble 
the  Scaly  Lizzards  moro 
than  tliey  do  the  true 
mammals. 
