auze cover, with, small bunches of
brushwood as supports; the other half were experiencing the vicissitudes
of open-air life on the rosemaries in the enclosure.

These preparations, which promised so well, did not provide me with the
sight which I expected, namely, a magnificent exodus, worthy of the
tabernacle occupied. However, a few results, not devoid of interest, are
to be noted. Let us state them briefly.

The hatching takes place as March approaches. When this time comes, let
us open the Banded Epeira's nest with the scissors. We shall find that
some of the youngsters have already left the central chamber and
scattered over the surrounding eiderdown, while the rest of the laying
still consists of a compact mass of orange eggs. The appearance of the
younglings is not simultaneous; it takes place with intermissions and may
last a couple of weeks.

Nothing as yet suggests the future, richly-striped livery. The abdomen
is white and, as it were, floury in the front half; in the other half it
is a blackish-brown. The rest of the body is pale-yellow, except in
front, where the eyes form a black edging. When left alone, the little
ones remain motionless in the soft, russet swan's-down; if disturbed,
they shuffle lazily where they are, or even walk about in a hesitating
and unsteady fashion. One can see that they have to ripen before
venturing outside.

Maturity is achieved in the exquisite floss that surrounds the natal
chamber and fills out the balloon. This is the waiting-room in which the
body hardens. All dive into it as and when they emerge from the central
keg. They will not leave it until four months later, when the midsummer
heats have come.

Their number is considerable. A patient and careful census gives me
nearly six hundred. And all this comes out of a purse no larger than a
pea. By what miracle is there room for such a family? How do those
thousands of legs manage to grow without straining themselves?

The egg-bag, as we learnt in Chapter II., is a short cylinder rounded at
the bottom. It is formed of compact white satin, an insuperable barrier.
It opens into a round orifice wherein is bedded a lid of the same
material, through which the feeble beasties would be incapable of
passing. It is not a porous felt, but a fabric as tough as that of the
sack. Then by what mechanism is the delivery effected?

Observe that the disk of the lid doubles back into a short fold, which
edges into t