What happens to spiders washed down the plughole?
- THEY DROWN, naturally. Your reader will no doubt be aware that this barbaric practice was once common in less civilised households. People used to assume that spiders made their way into the bath via the drains (swimming through the U-bend). Of course, we now know that spiders find their way into the bath from above. They then discover that they cannot scale the steep, slippery sides of the bath and remain stuck there until help arrives. The practice of washing spiders down plugholes is, one hopes, a thing of the past. But legend has it that there are still some who spurn the fascinating artistry of a spider in a well-formed web. These households, it is said, can be identified by the clouds of midges and flies that plague them as a result.
Robin Howard, Haywards Heath, W Sussex.
- I REMEMBER seeing a demonstration on TV where a large spider, washed down a plughole, floated on the water in the U-bend, and later climbed up the pipe and out of the overflow. So don't flush one if you're planning to have a bath; you may be joined by an uninvited guest.
Chris How, London (chris@fluxserv.demon.co.uk)
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