American Lancaster gazette. [volume] (Lancaster, Ohio) 1855-1860, 1858-04-22

the situation OF the nest. Unfortunately e.
this cavity for breeding is never seen ex- o
cept when the owner is out, and has left o
the door open behind him.
In some parts ofthe country there are r
grea! numbers OF large, beautiful yellow n
spotted spider, the webs Of which are a. v
bout yard in diameter. The lines on C
which these webs are spun are suspended u
from one tree to another, and are as thick p
as coarse thread. The 6bres radiats from a
a central point, where the INSECT waits for '
its prey. The webs are placed perp,ndic- t
ularly. and common occurrence in walk h
ing, is 10 get the face enveloped in them
as lady is in viel. {
Another kind OF spider lives in society, 6
and forms so great collection OF webs I
placed at every angle, that the trunk Of a
tree surrounded by them cannot be seen. ,
A piece OF hedge is often SO hiden by this !
spider that the branches are invisible {
Another is seen on the inside of the walls
of huts, among the Makololo in great a.
bundance. 1t is round in shape, spotted
brown in color, and the body half an inch
in diameter; the spread of the legs is an
inch and half. II makes a smooth spot
for itself on the wall, covered with the
above mentioned white-silky substance
There it is seen standing the whole day,
and never could ascertain how il fed. 1t
has no web, but a carpet, and is harm
less, though an ugly neighbor,
INSECTS WHICH DIsTILL WATER Before
leaving had an opportunity of observing
curious insect. which inhabits trees OF
the fig family Fcus upward Of twenty
species of which are found. Seven or
/ eight of them clustered round spot on
one of the smaller branches and there keep
up constant distilation off clear fluid,
which dropping to the ground, forms
r little pudle below. If a vessel is placed
: under them in the evening, it contains
s three or four pints of fluid 10 the morning.
= The natives say' that il drop falls in
2 the eyes, IL causes information of these or.
D gans. 10 the question whence is this
/ derived. the people reply the insect suck
it from the tree and our own naturalists
: give the same answer. l have never seen
: an orifce, and it is scarcely possible that
y the tree can yield so much. A similar but
!. much smaller homopterous insect, of the
n family Cercodidce is known in England as
the frog-hopper Aphrophora spumaria
It when full grown and furnished with wings
+. but while still in the pupa it is called
e "Cuckoe. Spit" from the mass Of froth in
h whicn it envelopes itself. The circulation
e of sap in plants of our climate especially
il Of the graminaca is not quick enough to
s. yield much moisture. The African spe.
Lit - Guo -, al, - zf al
" English. In the case OF branches of the
Is fig tree, the point the insects congregate
Ie on is soon marked by a numberof incipi-
10 ent roots, such as are thrown out wien
l. cutting is inserted in the ground for the
l. purpose Of starting another tree. be-
Mt lieve that both the English and African
he insects belong to the same family, and
la differ only in size. and that the chief part
ee OF the moistureis derived from the atmos.
I'd phere. l leave it for naturalisis to explain
Mt how these little creatures distill both by.
es day and night, as much water as they
at please, and are more Independent than hel
I'd majesty's steam ship. with their apparatus
Sc for condensng steam, for, without coal
he the abundant supplies of soa-water are o
= no avail. tried the following expert
he neut: Finding a colony of these insects
10 busily distilling on branch Of the Ricinus
b. communis. or caster oil plant, / denuded
10 about twenty inches of the bark on the
at tree side OF the insect, and scraped away
ed the inner bare SO as to destroy all the
ad ascending vessels. / also cut hole in the
he branch reaching 10 the midle, and then
ly cut out the pith and internal vessels. The
distilaton was then going on at the rate o.
n. one drop each 81 seconds. or about 9 ouu.
nd ces 81 drams in "a hours. Next morning
ms the distilation, so far from being affected
W. by the attempt to stop the supplies, suppo
m. sing that they had come up through the
ite branch from the tree, was increased 10
en- drop every seconds. or 12 drops per
of minute, making pint &c ounces) in ev
i'll cry "a hours. then cut the branch sc
.ht much that during the day it broke; bu
ar they still went on at the rate cfa droE
every seconds, while another colony OF
Lhe branch OF the same tree, gave drol
ng every II seconds only, or at the rate o
as. about 10 ounces A AS drains in "a hours
a l finally cut off the branch; but this wa
ear too much for their patience, for they i'm
/. mediately .decamped. as insects will do
;ns from either dead branch OF dead ami
nan NAL, which indian hunters soon know
bys when they SIT down on a recently kille
ou, bear. The presence Of greater moistur
and in the air increases the power Of tbes
tit distillers; the period Of greatest activity
Did in the morning when the air and every
an. thing else was charged with dew. q q
ex. Having but one day left for experimen
few L found again that another colony on
ont branch denuded in the same way, yielde
rby Adrop every 2 seconds, or pints 10 our
he ces in "a hours while acolony on
SITS. branch uptoucbed, yielded drop ever
inc II seconds, or 10 ounces 2 nineteen
liar twentieth drains in "a honrs, ] regrette
inc somewhat the want Of time to institui
!. Is another experiment. namely to cut
oer. branch and place il in the water, so as
rtb, keep il n. life, and then observe il ther
Is was any diminution of the quantity ,
;sfwater in the vessel This alone was war
IL IA ting to make II certain that they dra'
ex.l water from the atmosphere. i immagir
up- that they have some power sof,which "
tect are not aware, besides that nervous Unfit