https://sandhillsarchive.unl.edu/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/321301-1899085.jpg

Media

Part of A Pair of Spiderlings

extracted text

a

‘4

ones in the cage, but there was no evidence that they had fed
‘upon eagh other. As soon as they started out in life for
thenselves they began to creep through the meshes of the
gauze, stretching little lines of web all over the table and
aly



its surroundings, cravling about the bay window and grad
disappesring. A few remained with the nother, and we thought
hed grown so large that they could not eseape: wut on the
morning they were four weeks old I discovered that there was
only one left in the cage. While I was looking at hin ne
squeezed his way through a little hole and started out on an
independent career; but I promptly thvarted thet ambition and
put hin into a omell box with a double gauge cover, determined
to kéep hin if possible. We named hin Robinson Crusce—the
sole survivor, He had grow until his feet covered a circle
@ querter of an inch in dieneter, and still he had seemingly
eaten nothing. I killed a fly and put it into his box and he
seized and dragged it about with a great show of valor, though
he could riot possibly have killed 1¢. Three or four days of
feeding mado great changes in Robinson, and before the end of
his fifth week he was able to etch and kill a fly when it was
put into his cage. He vould sonetines have a great battle,
for his body was much smaller than the fly; but his eight
slender legs were a help in holding his prey, and he seemed

to have unlimited courage. He drank much more frequently then
the mature spiders,

The day he was five weeks old Robinson shed his skin,