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Show SPIDER AS WEATHER k'ROPHST, Yucatan Insect That Foretells Chuiags In Meteorological Conditions,! Most birds and animals have the faculty of discerning the approach of a storm with more or less accuracy, but in Yacatan they have a spider that is known as a weather forecaster. This insect is known as "am," on ac count of the effect produced by its poison. As far as its own product goes the insect is inoffensive and can be handled with impunity, but if anybody any-body has the misfortune to get one mysteriously mixed with his food he is certain to die after a few hours, and meanwhile, for some unexplained reason, rea-son, will frequently ejaculate "Am! Am! Am!" hence the name of the spider. Throughout the peninsula this is affirmed to be a fact, and if an "am" falls into fodder of horses or mules the animal that swallows it surely dies. This spider is shaped like a crab, minus the claws, and is of a bright yellow color, with brown spots; the biggest could be accommodated upon a silver dime. Its favorite abode is among the leaves of the banana shrub commonly, but erroneously, called tree. There it spins, with extreme rapidity, its web, which is prodigiously large, considering the size of the architect, ar-chitect, and proceeds to devour flies that are unlucky enough to get entangled en-tangled in the meshes of this astonishing aston-ishing little glutton, that is not satisfied satis-fied with less than a dozen a day; that is to say, it consumes a good deal more than its own bulk. Its progeny are numerous, and appear, at first, like mere black specks, smaller than the smallest pin's head. The sky may be blue and cloudless, when suddenly the am commences taking in its sails, or, rather, gathering gather-ing in its nets, with neatness and dispatch, dis-patch, cramming the whole of the material ma-terial into its diminutive body entirely out of sight. A few minutes completes com-pletes the job and the spider takes up its position on the under surface of one of the great leaves, to be lulled by the gentle swaying and sheltered while the storm rages. It is for this that the am has prepared, and never is mistaken; when the web is taken in rain will surely fall within an hour. The moment the am is touched it feigns death and lets itself drop, showing show-ing no sign of life until again placed nnnn a lpaf or nn the CTOUnd. Many a one has lain on the palm of the writer's hand, inert, all its legs drawn close to its body, while it was examined exam-ined at leisure, even being picked up in the fingers without its manifesting any life. |