There may be in the cup A spider steeped, and one may drink, depart, And yet partake no evil. Shakespeare, _Winter’s Tale_, act iii. sc. 1 (1604). A spider enclosed in a quilt and hung round the neck will cure the ague.--Mrs. Delany, _A Letter dated March 1, 1743_. I ... hung three spiders about my neck, and they drove my ague away.--Elias Ashmole, _Diary_ (April 11, 1681). A spider worn in a nutshell round the neck is a cure for fever. Cured by the wearing a spider around one’s neck in a nutshell. Longfellow, _Evangeline_, ii. (1849). Spiders spin only on dark days. The subtle spider never spins But on dark days his slimy gins. S. Butler, _On a Nonconformist_, iv. Spiders have a natural antipathy to toads. STAG. Stags draw, by their breath, serpents from their holes, and then trample them to death. (Hence the stag has been used to symbolize Christ.)--Pliny, _Natural History_, viii. 50. STORK. It is unlucky to kill a stork. According to Swedish legend, a stork fluttered round the cross of the crucified Redeemer, crying, _Styrkê! styrkê!_ (“Strengthen ye! strengthen ye!”), and was hence called the _styrk_ or _stork_, but ever after lost its voice. SWALLOW. According to Scandinavian legend, the bird hovered over the cross of Christ, crying, _Svalê! svalê!_ (“Cheer up! cheer up!”), and hence it received the name of _svalê_ or _swallow_, “the bird of consolation.” If a swallow builds on a house, it brings good luck. The swallow is said to bring home from the seashore a stone which gives sight to her fledglings. Seeking with eager eyes that wondrous stone which the swallow Brings from the shore of the sea, to restore the sight of its fledglings. Longfellow, _Evangeline_, i. 1 (1849). To kill a swallow is unlucky. When swallows fly high, the weather will be fine. When swallows fleet soar high and sport in air, He told us that the welkin would be clear. Gay, _Pastoral_, i. (1714). SWAN. The swan retires from observation when about to die, and sings most melodiously. Swans a little before their death sing most sweetly.--Pliny, _Natural History_, x. 23. The swanne cannot hatch without a cracke of thunder.--Lord Northampton, _Defensive, etc._ (1583). TARANTULA. The tarantula is poisonous. The music of a tarantula will cure its venomous bite. TOAD. Toads spit poison, but they carry in their head an antidote thereto. ... the toad ugly and venomous, Wears yet a precious jewel in its head. Shakespeare, _As You Like It_, act ii. sc. 1 (1600). In the dog days, toads never open their mouths. Toads are never found in Ireland, because St. Patrick cleared the island of all vermin. UNICORN. Unicorns can be caught only by placing a virgin in their haunts.