The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1902-01-22
FINE SILK FROM
WEB OF A SPIDER
Solution Of Problem Of Making
the insects Spin.


/ possible to put it into operation almost
| at once, and the silk woven from the
| threads has been put on the market 1t
/ is more beautiful than the ordinary SILK,
! possessing q strange, glowing, old-Sold
| Il:stre in it's natural state. Under the
/ microscope the separate threads ioof
| more like fine gold wires than noIes=
| The price of the spider silk still is TOD
high for its use by any except the ricn-
| but there appears to be little reason 10
| doubt that with good commercial man
/ agement it can be made cheaply as, IL
rot more So as the silk that is obtained
/ frcm the mulberry worms.
! The experience of the manufacturers.
/ SO far has shown that the silk can pc
/ obtained protitably from many different
kinds of spiders. In the present stage
| of the industry, however, it is round
! nest practicable to confine the work 70
| a large spider indigenous to the 1slana
| of Madagasc because this arachnld
| not only is remarkably plentiful and
| easily fed, but wonderfully productive
| a record has been established in its case
| of 1000 yards of thread having been oo-
| tanned from one specimen in one spininS-
The spider utilized for the purpose IS a
| large one known under the scientific
| name of Nephila MadaSascariensis. For
many years the natives of Madagascar
t its product but their work has been con-
| fined to using the cocoons in which the
| females wrapped their eggs. These CO.
coonS are of a beautiful pale yellow, and
| they were gathered in great quantities
and the silk was spun from the cocoons OF
| the silkworm. But this method was slow
and laborous besides being unsatisfac-
| tory, for the fine fbres were more or less
bruised while being unraveled and thus
| lost much of their gloss. Besides that
/ the thread SO spun was uneven and often
/ the tangle was so great that no contii1-
uous fibre could be obtained
| There was q Catholic missionary in
| Madagascar who saw he great posslbtll-
| ties in the industry and realized that
/ improved methods would mean great
deal to the natives. SO he devoted his
time to a study of the spider. One day
| he was watching one of the big fellows
| spin his web and the solution of the prob
| lem came to him in a flash. why. .
! thought he. wait until the spiders spin
| their cocoons? Why not take the thread
directly from them?''
From that the rest followed naturally
He discovered by experiment that it was
perfecly feasible to draw the threads out
oe the glands. Then he studied and plan
ned until at last he perfected an appara-
| tus as simple as it WAS ingenious.
| He has named it the "guilIotine." This
! Euillotine however is .not intended to
cut the head off the spider II is simply
a sort of straight wastcoat which holds
the savage creature firmly, so that it can
neither bite nor wriggle until the glands
| have been denuded of their precious con-
tents Then the victim is released with
| out damage. to be cared for until the
| operation can be repeated
The Slllllotine consists of n frame diTid-
| ed into any desired number of little square
| compartments. each just large enough to
| hold one spider and permit free manipu-
! lation At the bottom of each compart-
ment are two small hinged doors tia t
swing toward each other, and each of the
little doors has a TINY. SemiScircuIar place
| cut into it, exactly like the recess that is
| cut into the feadpiece of the Gulotae to
| receive the necl. of the victim. Thus.
| when the little doors ar shut there re-
| mains small hole that will jUst hold
| the ttorax of the spider firmly without
! iniuring it,
| The spider is fastened in the guillotine
| in such a manner that the head with the
| wicked jaws and the legs arr ours;dc,
while the harmless ab.IoElnn WI the
| spinning glands IS inside, where the op-
| orator can set al it with eompl2te case.
| The doors can be shut more less tight
| ". according 20 the size of the creatures.
u
| and the operators couch the gland WIFI
F.. the moistened emo of Il fcrefinge- 4
! wonderfully fine thread ,.thercS ON! IS
| the finger is withdrawn very slowly End
carefully the thread follows
This thread is pulled 10 4 2ie:cc.i itaTe
| and drawn through one Of The fine ilols 8.
| Then another thread is drawn from an
! other gland and the process is repeated
until from twelve 20 twenty-four nave
| been so inserted in the various openings
| of the frame. Then they are pulled
| together ana united in one thread which
is wound on wheel in Il manner similar
| to the process used for the common silk
| obtained from the worms.
| After the spiders have been robbed or
! their silk they are taken out OF the
gullotfnc carefully and placed on mango
trees. where they recuperate with re-
markable qtIickness. The withdrawal
| of the silk makes them ferociousiy hun-
| cry, and care must be taken to prevent
! them from attacking and eating eacn
| other AS Il safeguard against this. it
| has been found profitable to keep a con-
slant supply OF flies and other insects in
| the mango plantations. and to supply as
many as possible to each spider as soon as
| it is released from the guillotine. Their
| appetites are enormous. but Madagascar
| IL 81 liCH III lIsttI ne silStl II - iiJt
difficult to feed them. Besides, the
nephilae are vegetarians as well as flesh
| eaters, and they fatten on the manSoess-
Usually eight days of rest and feeding
are enough to make them ready for a
repetition of the gullotine experience. and
| the average spider of this species is so
| strong that it can bear the procedure re-
| peated in such intervals four five
| times. Then it fails suddenly to recup-
crate and its harder brethren do the
rest by adding the invalid to the sub
| sistence department of the interior
Tananarivo is the headquarters at pres
ent of the spider silk industry. The
! girls Of Madagascar have become organ
| lied as spider hunters, and there are
| daily shipments TO the capital from all
| over the island. The hunters are kept
| supplied with little basket cages. in which
the spiders are packed in compartments
SO that they cannot get at one another
| AS nlangoes grow everywhere and mos
| plentifully in Madagascar, it is much
easier to feed the spiders than it is
to feed the silkworms in places where
the mulberry trees must be watched cor