Thus difpoffeffed of his paternal city, our unfortunate governor was obliged to feek refuge from the neighbouring princes, who were as yet unfubdued, and he for fome time lived in a ftate of wretched dependance among them.

Soon, however, his love to his native country brought him back to his own city, refolved to ref cue it from the enemy, or fall in the attempt: thus, in difguife, he went among the inhabitants, and endeavoured, but in vain, to excite them to a revolt, Former misfortunes lay fo heavily on their minds, that they rather chofe to fuffer the most cruel bondage, than attempt to vindicate their former freedom.

As he was thus one day employed, whether by information or from fufpicion is not known, he was apprehended by a Saracen foldier as a spy, and brought before the very tribunal at which he once prefided. The account he gave of himself was by no means fatisfactory. He could produce no friends to vindicate his character; wherefore, as the Saracens knew not their prifoner, and as they had no direct proofs against him, they were content with condemning him to be publickly whipt as a vagabond.

The execution of this fentence was accordingly performed with the utmoft rigour. Bidderman was bound to the poft, the executioner feeming difpofed to add to the cruelty of the fentence, as he received no bribe for lenity. Whenever Bidderman groaned under the fcourge, the other redoubling his blows, cried out, "Does the villain murmur ?" If Bidderman entreated but a moment's refpite from torture, the other only repeated his former exclamation, "Does the villain murmur ?"

From this period revenge as well as patriotism took entire poffeffion of his foul. His fury ftooped fo low as to follow the executioner with unremitting refentment.

refentment. But conceiving that the best method to attain these ends, was to acquire fome eminence in the city, he laid himself out to oblige its new mafters, ftudied every art, and practifed every meannefs that serve to promote the needy, or render the poor pleafing, and by these means in a few years he came to be of fome note in the city, which juftly belonged entirely to him.

The executioner was therefore the first object of his resentment, and he even practifed the lowest fraud to gratify the revenge he owed him. A piece of plate, which Bidderman had previously stolen from the Saracen governor, he privately conveyed into the executioner's house, and then gave information of the theft. They, who are any way acquainted with the rigour of the Arabian laws, know that theft is punished with immediate death. The proof was direct in this cafe; the executioner had nothing to of fer in his own defence, and he was therefore condemned to be beheaded upon a fcaffold in the publick market place. As there was no executioner in the city but the very man who was now to fuffer, Bidderman himself undertook this, to him moft agreeable office. The criminal was conducted from the judgement feat bound with cords. The fcaffold was erected, and he placed in fuch a manner, as he might lie moft convenient for the blow.

But his death alone was not fufficient to fatisfy the refentment of this extraordinary man, unless it was aggravated with every circumftance of cruelty. Wherefore, coming up the fcaffold, and difpofing every thing in readiness for the intended blow, with the fword in his hand he approached the criminal, and whispering in a low voice, affured him that he himfelf was the perfon that had once been ufed with fọ much cruelty; that to his knowledge he died very innocently, for the plate had been ftolen by himself, and privately conveyed into the house of the other. 66 O, my

66

"O, my countrymen, cried the criminal, do you hear what this man fays ?"--Does the villain murmur? replied Bidderman, and immediately at one blow fevered his head from his body.

Still, however, he was not content till he had ample vengeance of the governors of the city, who condemned him. To effect this, he hired a small house adjoining to the town wall, under which he every day dug, and carried out the earth in a basket. In this unremitting labour he continued feveral years, every day digging a little, and carrying the earth unfufpected away. By this means he at laft made a fecret communication from the country into the city, and only wanted the appearance of an enemy, in order to betray it. This opportunity at length offered; the French army came into the neighbourhood, but had no thoughts of fitting down before a town which they confidered as impregnable. Bidderman, however, foon altered their refolutions, and, upon communicating his plan to the general, he embraced it with ardour. Through the private paffage above-mentioned, he introduced a large body of the most refolute foldiers, who foon opened the gates for the reft, and the whole army rufhing in, put every Saracen that was found to the fword.

THE SAGACITY OF SOME INSECTS.

SIR,

TO THE AUTHOR OF THE BEE.

ANIMALS in general are fagacious in

propor

tion as they cultivate fociety. The elephant and the beaver fhew the greateft figns of this when united;

but

but when man intrudes into their communities, they lofe all their fpirit of induftry, and testify but a very fmall fhare of that fagacity, for which, when in a facial ftate, they are fo remarkable.

Among infects, the labours of the bee and the ant have employed the attention and admiration of the naturalift; but their whole fagacity is loft upon feparation, and a fingle bee or ant feems deftitute of every degree of industry, is the most stupid infect imaginable, languishes for a time in folitude, and foon dies,

Of all the folitary infects I have ever remarked, the spider is the most fagacious, and its actions to me, who have attentively confidered, them, feem almoft to exceed belief. This infect is formed by Nature for a state of war, not only upon other infects, but upon each other. For this ftate Nature feems perfectly well to have formed it. Its head and breaft are covered with a ftrong natural coat of mail, which is impenetrable to the attempts of every other infect, and its belly is inveloped in a foft pliant fkin, which eludes the fting even of a wafp. Its legs are terminated by ftrong claws, not unlike those of a lobster, and their vaft length, like fpears, ferve to keep every affailant at a distance.

Not worse furnished for obfervation than for an attack or a defence, it has feveral eyes, large, trans parent, and covered with an horny fubftance, which, however, does not impede its vifion. Befides this, it is furnished with a forceps above the mouth, which ferves to kill or fecure the prey already caught in its claws or its net.

Such are the implements of war with which the body is immediately furnished; but its net to entangle the enemy feems what it chiefly trufts to, and what it takes moft pains to render as complete as poffible. Nature has furnished the body of this little creature with a glutinous liquid, which proceeding

4

from

from the anus, it fpins into thread coarfer or finer, as it chufes to contract or dilate its fphincter. In order to fix its thread when it begins to weave, it emits a small drop of its liquid against the wall, which hardening by degrees ferves to hold the thread very firmly. Then receding from the first point, as it recedes the thread lengthens; and when the fpider has come to the place where the other end of the thread fhould be fixed, gather ing up with his claws the thread which would otherwife be too flack, it is ftretched tightly, and fixed in the fame manner to the wall as before.

In this manner it fpins and fixes feveral threads parallel to each other, which, fo to fpeak, ferve as the warp to the intended web. To form the woof, it fpins in the fame manner its thread, tranfverfly fixing one end to the firft thread that was fpun, and which is always the ftrongeft of the whole web, and the other to the wall. All thefe threads, being newly fpun, are glutinous, and therefore ftick to each other wherever they happen to touch, and in those parts of the web most exposed to be torn, our natural artift ftrengthens them, by doubling the threads fometimes fix fold.

Thus far naturalifts have gone in the description of this animal; what follows is the refult of my own obfervation upon that fpecies of the infect called an Houfe-Spider. I perceived about four years ago, a large spider in one corner of my room, making its web, and though the maid frequently levelled her fatal broom against the labours of the little animal, I had the good fortune then to prevent its deftruction, and I may fay, it more than paid me by the enter tainment it afforded.

In three days the web was with incredible diligence completed; nor could I avoid thinking that the infect feemed to exult in its new abode. It frequently traversed it round, examined the ftrength

of