Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1883-03-02

A Queer Old Curiosity shop and Its
Keeper.

INSECT MENAGERIE.
A Queer Old Curiosity Shop and IT,
Keeper.
Most readers of the Philadelphia Pres
are doubtless familiar with the name o
Mrs. Mary Treat, whose studies in natu
raj history have been from time to tim,
recorded in the columns of the MONTH,
magazines and other periodicals. A
present Mrs. Treats observations ar,
confined chiefly to spiders, she and til,
Rev. DIR. McCook, Of Philadelphia, being
the only persons in this country who arc
making specially of studying the habiti
of these little creatures. Calling at hel
cottage in the suburbs of this city fount
the spider lover-a cultured, refined, del
icate little lady, whose hair is light,
touched with gray-returning from
morning spent in an oak opening at
short distance in the rear of the house
In this bit of woods it is her habit, when
the weather is fine, to devote portion Of
the early part of each day to taking OBJ.
servations of all sorts of homely wood
born things which live in the bark Of
trees, crawl upon the ground and burrov
under decayed logs and dried leaves
After pleasant apology for her service.
able dress and stout boots, I was usheret
into the study of the specialist. Books
and papers marked "With the authors
compliments, occupy the reading stand
i'll the sunny bay-window microscope is
stationed ready for use bright woods
gathered leaves, souvenirs of an autumn
journey in the North, adorn. the walls, and
Il small table placed at sufficient dis
tance from the window to admit of an
easy passage around it, holds several
large bouquets of more brilliancy than
beauty.
'Those are not placed there to admire,
she says, i'll answer to the notice they
call forth, "but to entice some spider out
in search of building site. Several
have settled down to business already
| Would you like to take II peep at them III
their own domiciles There is one Of
my especial pets isn't he beauty 2
There he was-a brown, hairy, long-leg.
Sed fellow, sitting with his knees doubled
up, evidently waiting for some uncautious
visitor i'll tine edible line to come along
and supply him with n meat dinner.
"How do they subsist, now that fly time
is over?' ! asked.
"Oh, forage for them" she answers.
when the weather is cold they eat moth
ing. There is colony of them now un.
der that bell glass in the light they
have gone into winter quarters. Some.
times they keep active the winter through
without food but whenever days are
sunny dinners are plenty for | throw open
doors and windows, set out some growing
things 10 make the room bright as posi-
BILE, and the flies come buzzing in and |
am able to harvest n small crop. 1t is n
poor day when my spiders and together
cannot lure few unwary victims into a
neat little trap. BY moderate strategy |
make the capture and they put the pris-
oners to death.
SIS it true that they devour their kind?'
Sometimes. The male is a benpecked
fellow, and the female will eat him if she
gets chance. Occasionally mother
spider kills some of her numerous prog
eny to feed her remaining ravenous brood
of spiderlings. At one time l brought
up an entire family in bottle, and you
can have no idea how interesting found
them. The babies, in astonishing num-
bers, swarm ON the mothers back and
crawl over her body until big enough to
wean, which is not until they are from
kicks, shakes or scrapes them off by the
dozen, and after n few rebutfs they run
away to set up housekeeping for them
selves. 1t is amusing to watch the moth
cr feed her brood. i have frequently of
fered her nice plump fly which she ac-
cepted eagerly, and Immediately several
OF the little ones were summoned to the
feast. Three or four would gather around
/ ~ al tpls tl,..1 Il a
dainty morsel for them. When they had
drawn plenty off they scampered and n
new relay came up to lay hold of the It'd
bit"
"lt is plain you do not share the popu-
lar antipathy to spiders" / remarked.
"No, have no antipathy for them, y
she says warmly. "They are pretty good
companions when one lives alone. | have
spent years studying them here and in
portions of New England, cultivatiug
their acquaintance closely, and yet feel
that am only beginning to know their
ways. They are learning to know me and
will take building material from my hand
when j offer it. A spider lives several
years, and besides their domestic life,
their building and spinning and weaving
which are beautifully and systematically
carried ON, there are births and deaths to
be chronicled and curious characteristic
traits which only the close observer
covers.
On the occasion of n visit in late au-
tumn, Mrs. Treat was manifesting great
enthusiasm for tent building spider
which had finished OFF II queer little tri-
angular cdifce under the edge of the ta-
Bile, dainty, gauzy affair, more rare than
but not as beautiful as the orb-weaver's
structure. Another busy worker had
stuck its tent under shelter of IL big leaf,
where the least touch would apparently
be like an earthquake among such fairy
like formations and / who had ruth
lessly demolished many fragile struc-
ture by II vigorous stroke of the broom -
found myself involuntarily walking about
ON tlp-toe and speaking in hushcd tones
while making survey Of these dainty
specimens of spider-crochet.
"liere is Il gift which came from the
North, Mrs. Treat said, holding up n
pretty gray cocoon that looked like soft
woven silk attached to the foliage ends of
some dry grasses, the whole snugly pack
ed in box like n jewel in its case and
sent by mail. "This holds the eggs of n
different species. ! shall put il in the
sunshine to hatch, and by and by, when
the baby spiders issue from the cocoon, |
shall have an excellent opportunity to
study them Ms they are growing up. |
get II great many specimens from New
Hampshire put up in bottles and wooden
boxes--spiders, nests and cocoons. Some
have their houses sent with them; some
build when they reach here"
little tray was next set out for inspec-
tion, the contents of which were very in
teresting, as they consisted of nests of
various construction brought from the
spiders outdoor haunts. They were Of
surprisingly beautiful workmanship, and