Twelve or thirteen ounces of the bags were beaten with the hand, or by a stick, until they were entirely free from dust. They were then washed in warm water, which was frequently changed, until it was no longer discoloured by the bags. They were next steeped in a large quantity of water, wherein soap, saltpetre, and gum-arabic had been dissolved. The whole was then set to boil over a gentle fire for three hours. Lastly, the bags were rinsed in clear warm water, and set out to dry. They were then fit for the operation of carding, which was performed with very fine cards, and thus silk of a peculiar ash colour was obtained, which was spun without difficulty. [Illustration: SPIDER’S NEST ATTACHED TO A FLAT SURFACE. ] [Illustration: SPIDER’S NEST LAID OPEN. ] The great obstacle which prevented the establishment of any considerable manufacture from these spiders’ bags, was the difficulty of obtaining them in sufficient abundance; but M. Bon, who was enthusiastic respecting the value of his discovery, fancied that he could easily overcome this obstacle, and at first his efforts appeared remarkably successful. He formed a large spider establishment, which, for a time, was very prosperous. Having ordered all the short-legged spiders (which are the most industrious spinners) to be collected for him by persons employed for the purpose, he enclosed them in paper boxes, with pin-holes pricked in them to admit the air to the prisoners. The insects were regularly fed with flies, and prospered well on their diet. In due time most of them laid their eggs, and spun their silken bags. M. Bon affirmed that each female produced from six to seven hundred eggs, whereas the silkworm moth lays only about one hundred. He also stated, that out of seven hundred or eight hundred young spiders which he kept, scarcely one died in a year; while of one hundred silkworms, not forty lived to form their cocoons. These favourable statements led the Royal Academy of Paris to take the subject into consideration, and Réaumur was appointed to inquire into the merits of the new scheme. This careful inquirer found many serious obstacles in the way of such establishments. The fierceness of spiders, and their propensity to destroy each other, were noticed as unfitting them to be bred and reared together. On distributing about five thousand spiders in cells, in companies of about fifty or a hundred, it was found that the larger spiders quickly killed and ate the smaller, until there were only one or two occupiers of each cell. The silk of the spider was also found inferior in lustre and strength to that of the silkworm, and had the disadvantage of being incapable of winding off the ball, but must necessarily be carded. [Illustration: GARDEN SPIDER—(_Natural Size._) ]