The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1892-02-10
A PET SPIDER,
He Had Lots of Fun Tumbling into a
Bottle of Ink.

We named him Belshazzer on the
occasion of his first visit to us, though
l have forgotten what suggested the
name, says the Philadelphia Times.
He was big black spider, with a
shiny. fat body, suggestive of an
abundance of flies, but for all this ap-
probation of the good things of life he
was of scholarly turn of mind. We
were all seated around the study table,
preparing the next days lessons and
tasks, when Minnie gave scream that
made me jump and even the boys
looked up startled. There was a big
black spider calmly seated on a Latin
dictionary regarding US intently. 1
| tapped paper at him, but he only
drew in his legs with a slightly con-
| temptuous air and did not stir.
Let him alone, sister," said Tom.
I've been studying about spiders,
and here is good opportunity for OBJ
serving their habits
AS if encouraged by this champion
ship Belshazzer descended from the
dictionary and crawled over the open
page of an algebra, as if trying to
make out what it was. From this he
went over all the books. inspecting
them all with the same critical air and
at last settled on a physical geography
as most worthy of his attention. Every
now and then he would refresh him
self with a, drink out of Alexis ink
bottle.
All at once we missed him, and as
he had last been seen drinking from
the edge of the bottle suspicion i'm
mediate arose that he had fallen in.
He had, and was floundering helpless
ly about in the black pool. He was
rescued aud placed on a scrap of
waste paper with injunctions to remain
there until dry, but this he had no in
tention of doing. On the contrary he
showed fixed determination to walk
over Toms neatly written Latin exer-
oise. You shan't, SIR" said Tom
gently hosting him with the feathered
end of quill pen on to his scrap of
paper.
And then, for the next few minutes,
we forgot all about him, till Toms CRY
of dismay called attention to his exer-
else. It was lined and refined and
lined again with Belshazzar's tracks.
He had not left an inch unmarked, and
was even looking very complacent over
his nice black tracings when our eX-
clamations of sorrow and anger seem
ed to arouse him to a sense of shame,
and he scrambled down the table anG
was gone in the twinkling of an eye.
We thought we had seen the last Of
him, but the next night he came again
and again, until we looked for him as {
regular visitor and placed the physical
geography open for him. for his fancy
for it seemed to last. The accident O.
his fall into the ink bottle was repeat
ed several times, for he would drink
the ink, and once for several minutes
we feared that he was drowned, bu
he gradually revived, and beyond ap
pearing rather subdued was little thu
worse for the adventure. But when
ever he had been in the ink after tina
first night nothing could induce him t.
stir off the paper on which he wa
placed to dry. though he would rul
over that and seemed to take pride il
the designs with which he ornamenteC
it.
What became of our queer pet W
, never knew, but one night he failed t.
1 make his appearance, and we wer
surprised to find how much we misse,
I him. We hoped. however, that h
. would come the next evening but h
,, never did, and somehow the stud
,, hour after that seemed longer an
: duller and not to be looked forward tC