A mammoth spider was spinning his web among the branches above my head, and his web was like linen thread. A happy thought came into my mind, and I was about to put it into execution when I saw he had stretched a thread across the path and I had disarranged this when I had bent down the tree, and he was now about to repair the damage. The best of it all was his main line was quite within my reach, along which he was just then traveling. He belonged to a distinct species, specimens of which I have not seen since, for he spun five threads at a time. His progress was not very rapid, for he braided the threads together as he went. He reached the other side, and after having made fast the end of his braid or rope, he came just as slowly back, leaving another line trailing behind. When he reached a point just above me and had securely fastened his line by wrapping it several times around a good limb, and glueing it, I began to tease him with a small branch that I twisted around for the purpose, and he became so enraged he lost his hold and fell to the ground. I quickly snipped the line which he had spun in his descent, pulled myself up to his rope bridge, along which I went hand over hand until I reached the middle of the path, where I swayed up and down until I could let go and drop to the ground without injury, which I did, quite glad of my escape from certain death; for so read the rule, and I could have come down in no other way without bringing with me many leaves and some twigs. In a short time I came to a stop, as the path had done the same. I could not determine where it continued, for there was a very respectable waterfall into which it led, and over which, or rather up which, it undoubtedly went. No man could swim or climb that torrent of water; but mount it I must, for there was no path leading in any other direction. I sat for a long time with my feet in the water, having removed my boots for the purpose, as my feet were hot from the long walk; but I could not concoct any scheme for scaling the water fence. [Illustration] I was just dropping into a doze, when I heard a splashing below me and saw some great sturgeon preparing to shoot the falls. It took me no time at all to wade into the water, and as a big one shot by, grasp him by his caudal fin, and I was up the chute before I had time to breathe. In fact, the transit was so sudden it was quite a spell before I got my breath back again; but I did it just in time to save myself from being swept back, for the great fish had shaken me loose when we had barely passed the verge. But I had left my boots below, and I could never enter the presence of the Princess barefoot. So I secured them in this manner: