We understand from the passage that spiders can live in virtually any climate
are increasing in number every year
prefer hot jungles to cold places
have more different species than any other animal
are the hardest-working of all animals
The silk that spiders produce is stronger than iron
has to be twisted before use
can measure 6,700 metres in length
has a variety of specific functions
can be used in the same way as silkworm silk
It is stated that when spiders work together. they are stronger than the strongest animals
they can capture more and bigger prey
any food they catch is then shared equally
the webs they weave become much more complex
they are less vulnerable to attack by lions
29 HOW TO TRAIN ELEPHANTS Two main techniques have been used for training elephants, which we may cal respectively the tough and the gentle. The former method simply consists of setting an elephant to work and beating him until he does what is expected of him. Apart from any moral considerations, this is a stupid method of training, for it produces a resentful animal who at a later stage may well turn into a man-killer. The gentle method requires more patience in the early stages, but produces a cheerful, good- tempered elephant who will give many years of loyal service. The first essential in elephant training is to assign to the animal a single trainer who will be entirely responsible for the job. Elephants like to have one master just as dogs do, and are capable of a considerable degree of personal affection. There are even stories of half-trained elephant calves who have refused to feed and pined to death when, by some unavoidable circumstance, they have been deprived of their own trainer. Such extreme cases must probably be taken with a grain of salt, but they do underline the general principle that the relationship between elephant and trainer is the key to successful training.