THE CATERPILLAR.—FOR VIRTUE IN GENERAL.
The caterpillar, which by means of assiduous care is able to weave round itself a new dwelling place with marvellous artifice and fine workmanship, comes out of it afterwards with painted and lovely wings, with which it rises towards Heaven.
THE SPIDER.
The spider brings forth out of herself the delicate and ingenious web, which makes her a return by the prey it takes.
[Footnote: Two notes are underneath this text. The first: ‘nessuna chosa e da ttemere piu che lla sozza fama’ is a repetition of the first line of the text given in Vol. I No. 695.
The second: faticha fugga cholla fama in braccio quasi ochultata c is written in red chalk and is evidently an incomplete sentence.]
Taken from The Notebooks of Leonardo da Vinci edited by Jean Paul Richter, 1880.