The Daily times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1886-1889, 1888-11-04


never cease TO nip and tear his limbs by
tugging aud pulling them on either side,
so that he can never manage TO seize their
az liz bodies with bis pincers. AS soon as
he is sufficiently worn they fly at once to
his yitals, and SO accomplish his end. II
Il but repetition OF the lion and The
iackall ON q smaller scale.
SO much for only one specimen Of tie
numberless Inhabitants who inftst this
mighty tree. Time would fail 10 record
the history of the others-the borers and
beetles, the crickets and the katydids,
and. the thousand other like creatures
whose cheqrered lies are passed here.
had ceased from troubling the ants
and turned to enjoy the landscape, now
softening under the declining sun. In SO
doing | was suddenly attracted by the
rapid descent Of small body from an
overhanging limb and directly in M line
of vision. According to al encient ad-
dsge, 'if spider drops from above in
front of a person, such an one viii see
before night dear friend" BE this as
it may, at once discovered the object TO
be large spider OF the variety "yaga-
honda" or wanderers. These are the
nomads Of the Arachnida, and may
with truth be said to dwell in tents. The lat
ter they pitch at eventide OF each succeed
ing day. and at whatever spot they may
then find themselves. Like the roaming
Bedouin they have no permanent abiding
place. They begin their work at the
very time most OF the animal creation go
to rest. Hence the observer will find
them at the hour of twilight busy stretch
ing their tiny cables from limb to limb
and from twig to twig on tree and BRAN
BILE and shrub, illustrating the poetry Of
mathematics in their gossamer diagrams.
These tireess workers are found in
countless millions over every part of the
world, and will, in single night, bedeck
continent with an interminsble net
work of jewels When the rising sun
first looks out upon the dewy
earth his morning rays reward in
boundless beauty the labors of these
cunning workers. They are Of every
size, Some appear mere specks in the
depths of the dripping grass, dottiDg the
centres of their tiny webs Others some
what larger are to be seen on bushes,
while others still hang conspicuously
suspended in more pretentious habita-
tions up among the limbs of trees. OF
the latter kind was the specimen who
had so Unexpectedly forced himself on
nv attention. At times these fellows APP
pear to be particularly happy in their
;erial homes, disporting themselves at
evening in mid-air by rapidly descend
ing and ascending their silken cables
Such demonstrations are usually the pre-
lude TO their time for work, for very soon
afterward they suddenly cease their frol-
les aud betake themselves to serious bus
mess. 1t Is difficult TO say what the de-
sign of this spider was in thus making
his sudden descent to the earth Per-
haps when running up and down their
cables as just described they are endeay-
oring TO take on the wing such smaller
insects as may be within their range.
This theory, however, does net accord
with the fact that spiders of this variety
always rely upon their Widespread nets
for the capture of their prey, rather than
upon individual effort BE this as il may,
if the specimen now referred 10 had any
hostile intentions in descending 10 the
ground, he certainly caught Tartar ~
had scarcely identified his active liz
ure as 1t touched the grass,
when | discovered quite close 10
him another insect belonging TO a very
different family, and who his spidership
should have instinctively have known to
be q very dangerous ncighbor. This
was O. variety of wasp popularity called
mud wasp" or dirt dauDer.' beauti-
ully.shaped, supple-shini blue-back
insect, whose industry rivals that OF the
bee, and who, more providers than the
ant carefully slows away her food for
winter use. She always hunts alone and
trusts to her own energy and pluck IN
pursuit of a living for herself ami fami-
w. She feeds exclusively upon spiders
hunts them vigorously, and does not hes
itate TO attack the most ferOci0us OF the
breed. Here is another wasp harmless to
man. The specimen before me was fe'
male She, too, has a sting which she
uses not TO kill, but TO paralyze her cap
tured prey. Her habits are domestic.
She often builds her hut Of clay In the
early summer under the caves OF farm
houses or inside deserted cabins. Occa-
sionally she ventures into dwellings and
endeavors to hide her "clay tenement" in
the corner or window; and often be
hind the whiiest Of dlmity curtains.
When in the act of building she emils a
peculiarly cheerful note, vibrating her
body and wings as If delighted with her
work. Unfortunately this generally be-
trays her preseLce and brings upon her
home certain destruction at the hands of
of the tidy housekeeper. When, however
she has succeeded in establishing herself
she is of at once in search OF spiders.
As the summer advances her industry
has been so great that, like the coyetous
man In the Scriptures, she finds it neces-
sary 10 add house to hous, in which 10
store away her food supplies. During
all this time, too, she has been depositing
her eggs in the bodies of her victims, so
that when in the spring her young are
Matched they will have something 70 live
upon. II the reader will take the lrOu-
bic TO examine one OF these mud huts
late in the autumn he will be surprised
TO find what quantity OF bleached spi-
ders are therein packed away like cured
bacon.
As with all other mundane creatures,
H. ~trt, trtL,d