The "trap-door spider" is indeed most interesting. Erber tells us in Life and Her Children, by A. B. Buckley, that he once sat for hours on a moonlight night watching the doings of these insects. He saw two of the spiders come out each from its hole, and pushing open their doors, fasten them back by fine threads to blades of grass. They then spun a web round the open hole, and went back into their tunnels. By-and-by two beetles were caught, one in each web. In an instant the spiders darted out, and pierced their victims with their poisoned fangs, sucked out their soft flesh, and carried the empty bodies away some distance from their holes. Erber left them; but on returning in the morning, he found the spiders had cleared away all trace of the webs, and were shut down snugly in their hidden homes.
Who among us works more cleverly or with more industry for daily bread than these little spiders? They do it, too, under many difficulties and dangers; for birds and lizards are watching above-ground to make a meal of them, whilst crawling insects creep into their holes to attack them.
Some of these spiders have learned a means of escaping even this danger, for they make a second tunnel branching out of the first, and build a doorway between the two, so that they can retreat into the second passage in case of attack, and, by setting their backs against the door, baffle the intruder.
HOW TO BIND MUSIC.
Should you wish to bind music, an atlas, or any wide volume which should lie flat on the table when opened, a "flexible" or elastic back should be made, instead of a "spring" or open one.
In this case, a few appliances will be needed, such as a "baker's rasp," some unbleached calico, and a solution of India rubber. This solution is sold in tins. Three coats of it should be applied to the back of the music-book, and two to a strip of the calico, which latter should lap over half an inch on each side. In preparing the back for the solution, rub up and indent the folded edges composing the back with the baker's rasp, so as to leave crevices for the reception of as much of the solution as possible. The head-band is secured by gluing a piece of fine calico all down the back.
REBUS.