The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1893-03-10
SPIDER CoVRTsHIP.
THEIR lovEMAKINe r RESEMBLES THAT
OF HUMAN BEINGS.

OF HUMAN BEINGS.
Spiders Fight, Exhibit Skill In Dancing,
Endeavor to Display Their Best Graces
and Mako spectacies of Theinseives-Un-
fortunate Lovers.
When a man IL In love, according to q
very old and respectable authority, he gen.
orally proceeds to demonstrate the fact by
making a spectacle of himself. Mother
Goose has told us all how certain amphibi.
ans do the same thing under similar cir
cumstances Professor and Mrs. G. w.
Peckham Of Milwaukee, as the result of ex.
tended and patient observation, assure us
that the same old rule obtains In another
humble sphere of animate creation-name-
ly, among the spiders.
These interesting and important investi-
cations have attracted much attention In
the scientific world, and go far toward sus-
tanning one of the important theories In the
Darwinian system of evolution. The theory
which has been the subject of much contro
versy among scientists. Is that the lower or
ders of animals are governed In their pref
erences for one and another by aesthetic
considerations similar to those which pre-
vail among human beings, the handsomest
the bravest or the strongest Of any given
number OF suitors having decidedly tbs
best chance of winning favor With those
animals among whom the question is de
termined. as in the knightly days of old, by
wager of battle but with insects like tbs
butterfly and the spider, where more civ
ilized form of courtship Is observed. the
point is not so easily settled.
Butterflies, for instance, are not provided
with any weapons of offense or defense
and while the spiders are formidable tc
other animals they can produce little effect
upon each other. The spiders of the fam
lily attide, among which the studies Of
Professor and Mrs. Peckham were made
do good deal of fighting but these battles
seem to be mainly the result of jealousy
and personal feeling and are supremely
unimportant In determining the issue Of
courtship.
Upon one occasion two gallants who
were paying attentions in the same quarter
rushed savagely upon each other and
fought for % minutes during one round re
manning clinched for six minutes. The
combatants appeared tired at the close Of
the battle, but after a short rest were per
fectly well and fought a number of times
subsequently. Indeed these combats seem
to be quite as harmless as tho average
French duel, for at another time or II
specimens ofthe very quarrelsome Dendry
phantes capitalus were put in box, and
| after two weeks of hard fighting there was
not one wounded warrior to be found.
| The spiders of the attidD family are pc
culiarly suitable for study, because theil
habits are not modified by confinement
The amount of labor spent in the admira
BILE work Of the Peckhams may be gatheret
from the fact that they often worked foul
or five hours a day for n week in getting {
fair idea of the habits of single species.
The courtship ofthe Saitispulexis n most
elaborate affair and success depends upor
| the grace and skill of the sutton in dancing
| This performance, as described by Profess
or Peckham, throws the Spanish fandangt
| or the "Ta-ra-ra Boom decay" convolution.
far into the shade.
He raises his whole body on one side by
Strengthening out the legs, and, lowering il
on the other by folding the first two pair o
| legs up and under, leans so far over as t
be in danger of losing his balance, which Il
only maintained By sliding rapidly TOWARD
the lower side. lie moves in semicircl,
for about two inches aud then instantly re
verses the position of tho legs and circles
in the opposite direction. This is repeated
circles made in this curious dance.
Whenever the spider possesses any spe
cial adornment in the way of coloring h'
always makes point of displaying it a.
fully rs possible in the presence of his in
amorata. The spider known as Synagele,
| picata has the first pair of legs especially
thickened. These are fattened ON the an
terror surface and are Of q brightly rides
cent steel blue color. When disportinl
himself before admiring eyes, he pause!
| every few moments to rock from side t.
side and to bend his brilliant legs so that
they may be~brought into full view. ii,
could not choose better position to MAKE
the display. In fact, his attitude first di
rected Professor Peckham's attention t,
his peculiar beauty.
The Carbohydrates capitalus has bronz'
brown face, rendered conspicuous by snow
white hands and, whether intentional OF
not, he assumes an attitude which serve
admirably to expose this feature to view
His antics are repeated for a long time
often for hours. In the Habocsum splen
dens tho abdomen Is Of a magnificent pur
plish red, and he assumes an attitude which
displays this beauty very completely. TIL,
| case of the Astia vittata Is especially inter
esting, because there are two well iparket
varieties of male-one red, like the female
and the other black.
The attitudes and movements of court
ship are entirely different in the two varie
ties. The black, evidently later develop
ment, is much the liyelier of the two
and when the two varieties come into ri
valry he is, as rule, successful. Those VIII
arc fond of tracing analogics may perhap
| find in this a curious confirmation of tn
| theory about the attraction between tn
blond and brunette types of humanity,
The dangers of courtship were also oftel
witnessed. A specimen of Hasarius howl
continued to pay his addresses after the oh
ject of them had shown signs of mpatience
when she seized him and held him by til
head for minute, he struggling. Atlengtl
by desperate effort he succeeded in free
ing himself and ran away Another un
fortunate of the Phidippus rufus variet
was caught and eaten when he insisted OF
| showing off his fine points too persistently
If there are any monarchs in spiderdon
corresponding to the king of Dahomy, thi
and another savage creature under obser
walton would be a valuable acquisition t,
his army of Amazons The order to whicl
the latter specimen belongs Is known Il
science as Phidippas morsitans. One day
being in particularly bad humor, this vi
| rago sprang upon two promising youni
members of the so called sterner sex an,
killed them, although they had offered he
only the merest civilities. - PHILADELPHIA
| Press.
Losing Money on a Theatrical Venture.
| A certain New Yorker who had put
comedy company out for the summer as
flyer" without any previous experience ii
| the business was telling of his misfortune
to patient friend
"And so you lost money, did your" sal
the friend
Lost money! exclaimed the would
manager why, old man, sunk %. goo Il
It, All gone In eight weeks"
"Is that sof I'm awfully sorry"
Eyes, sir, and the worst of it Is lost 81
+, IN cash. New York Herald.