To my astonishment, he did not break out into a fury, as I expected, but took the matter in simple seriousness.

He thought for a moment, and then said, "May I have three days?
I shall clear them away." Of course, I said that would do.

I must watch him.
18 June .-- He has turned his mind now to spiders, and has got several very big fellows in a box.

He keeps feeding them his flies, and the number of the latter is becoming sensibly diminished, although he has used half his food in attracting more flies from outside to his room.
1 July .-- His spiders are now becoming as great a nuisance as his flies, and today I told him that he must get rid of them.
He looked very sad at this, so I said that he must some of them, at all events.

He cheerfully acquiesced in this, and I gave him the same time as before for reduction.
He disgusted me much while with him, for when a horrid blowfly, bloated with some carrion food, buzzed into the room, he caught it, held it exultantly for a few moments between his finger and thumb, and before I knew what he was going to do, put it in his mouth and ate it.
I scolded him for it, but he argued quietly that it was very good and very wholesome, that it was life, strong life, and gave life to him.
This gave me an idea, or the rudiment of one.