Woonsocket High School - Quiver Yearbook (Woonsocket, RI)

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THE QUIVER A MORTAL COMBAT 17 Early one morning last summer, I had gone into my hack yard to look at the garden, when my eye was attracted by what looked like a piece of fine cloth. It was covered with dew drops and sparkled in the early sun. I bent closer to examine it and discovered that it was a spider’s web. It was shaped like a funnel, with the mouth spreading out over the grass like a cloth. The smaller end of the funnel disappeared under a large lettuce leaf. Deep in the tunnel I could see two glistening spots, barely visible to the eye. While I could not see what they were, I knew that they must be the eyes of the spider. What the spider looked like I had no idea. Wishing to see him, I took a small stick and tried to poke him out. Instead of running out, he ran farther into his tunnel. Upon further provocation he disappeared from sight. Looking under the lettuce leaf to see where he had gone, I discovered that there was an opening at the other end of the tunnel, through which he had escaped. Realizing that it would be useless to try to find him, 1 left the web, intending to come again the following morning to learn more. The next morning I was out in the garden very early. The web of the previous day was still there, but it was badly torn and was unoccupied. I was disappointed; but as I looked up, I was pleased again, tor not five feet from the first web was another one. 1 approached cautiously so as not to scare the occupant, if any were there. This time the spider was out in plain sight. His body was of a uniform gray. His legs were of a light shade of brown with darker stripes running in bands. Down his back were also two rows of small, black spots, with a lighter line running between them. The spinnerets protruded about one-eighth of an inch. His head was not much smaller than his abdomen. On the forehead were set two small, glossy, coal-black eyes, between which were clustered four smaller eyes. His mouth was armed by two heavy, powerful fangs. His body fn.m tip to tip was about an inch long. Just then my attention was attracted by the buzzing of a wasp that was hovering over the web. I made a sweep with my hand and succeeded in knocking the wasp into the spider’s web. The conflict that followed was a real combat. The spider rushed towards the wasp, but stopped short as if considering whether it were best to attack or not. The wasp could not get away because she was entangled in the web. She was opening and closing her jaws as if to bite and was also brandishing her dagger. The spider was at an advantage because he could run around, while the wasp was limited in her motions.

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16 THE QUIVER A SHIP O’ FANCY A ship o’ fancy I once did sail, O’er a beautiful amethyst sea; But a wind did blow That wrecks such ships, And my ship o’ fancy It wrecked for me. I Faith was my captain, ; Hope, his mate; But Illusion stood guard O’er the wheel with Fate. • And one dark night, When Faith was not there, The storm did come That wrecked my ship fair. i Though my ship is wrecked, My captain’s left for me, And he still in my dreams Sails that amethyst sea. MILDRED L. BUXTON, ’23.

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18 THE QUIVER The spider made the first attack. He made a quick jump on the wasp and tried to bite her; but the wasp was alert and with a quick motion, snapped off one of the spider’s legs that had come too close to her mouth. The spider got away quickly and began circling the wasp in order to get her off her guard; but the wasp was very vigilant, and the spider could not get a chance to strike at a vital spot. The spic'.er had also to contend with a double armed adversary. The wasp had not only her powerful jaws, but also a sharp, poisoned dagger, a thrust of which would end the spider’s life in a second. It was full five minutes before either succeeded in disposing of his enemy. The spider, after repeated attempts to catch the wasp off her guard, saw a free opening to the wasp’s neck. It took only a second for the spider to ciart at the wasp, sting her with his fangs, and get away. Almost instantly the wasp failed to move. The spider had dealt her a death blow, that had killed her instantly. After a short period of rest, the spider dragged his victim to his den, there to feast on her. He well deserved his repast, for, although victor, he was not unscathed. He was to have his feast after the battle, as the knights of by-gone centuries used to have. To me this was a very interesting experience. When I brushed the wasp into the spider’s web, I had no idea that I should witness a struggle between two of Nature’s fiercest children. REMO RAM ELLA, ’23. ORIGINAL MYTHS I Why Bees Buzz Many, many years ago, in northern Asia, there lived a good king He owned a large forest, about five miles from his palace, in which he frequently hunted. In the middle of this forest was a large tree with a bench below it, where the hunters would rest when they were tired. In this tree there lived a bee, but the king did not know it. The bee’s home was not much higher than three or four feet from the bench, and many times the bee had looked from his little home upon the tired hunters. One day the king, after a long hunt, came and sat under this tree. After a while, he fell asleep. He had been sleeping about two hours