Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 50.djvu/395

Rh When the spider hears an enemy investigating her burrow, she runs below the second door and pushes it up, so that the marauder will think he has happened upon an empty nest, the second door forming the bottom of it. The babies are born in the tubes, and remain with their mother until they are able to make nests for themselves.

These spiders spend the days in their burrows, but at night they all flock out to enjoy themselves. They fasten open their doors and make little webs over the grass. Many night-wandering beetles are caught, and then comes the banquet, which consists of the softer parts of the beetles. In the morning the closest observer could not find a trace of the preceding night's revelry, so carefully have the spiders cleared away all webs, beetle legs, and wing covers.

One group of spiders is called Lycosa, which means wolf spider. Perhaps they were named from the similarity of their habits to those of the wolf, being like him wandering and predaceous.

One of these is the tarantula, a great hairy fellow who inhabits warm countries. The species received its name from the Italiancity of Tarentum, where they have been found in large numbers. There is a curious superstition connected with the tarantula's bite. If a person was bitten it was thought nothing could save his life but the playing of some lively dancing tunes. When he heard these he was supposed to be unable to resist the temptation to dance. Thus he grew very warm, and the perspiration came out in great beads all over him, each bead filled with poison. After he had danced as long as he possibly could, the poison had all escaped from his system. The tarantulas feed on small birds as well as insects. Indeed, one of the great southern species is called the bird-catching spider.

In India, where all animals are treated with consideration and even reverence, the little children often keep these spiders for pets. They tie a cord round a spider and lead it about, feeding it with worms and insects. Mother Lycosa always carries her egg