Buchanan County bulletin. [volume] (Independence, Iowa) 1869-1891, 1876-11-10

| The busy man of the horse cal
found time to miss her, the school
mates evidently missed their queen
for when I met them they walked
quietly, talked low, and several wore
black bows upon the sleeve; while I
although never knew her name, oil
learned a single fact about her, felt
the sweetness of her happy nature
and have not yet forgotten my little
schoolgirl.
Ants in South Africa.
Cor Land and Water.
During the months Of September
and October, 1878, | was living in
the dense bush, about six miles from
Cape Coast Castle. Having much
time at my disposal, | utilized it by
noting the habits and natures of var
ious creatures inhabiting that beauti
full, though dea dly country. Twas par
ticularly attracted by the vast hordes
of ants which were to be seen every
day marching over the narrow roads
through the bush, and l determined
to notice their habits as closely as
possible. Perhaps it may interest
those Of your readers who have a
taste for natural history, if l extract
from my notes all that refers to these
insects, for these particulars | have
not seen in any work yet published.
In the first instance l would mention
their migratory habits. | was un-
able to discover the cause of the
changes of abode they made, or what
it was that induced them to take up
their new quarters in any particular
spot; but this was certain, they were
constantly on the move, trave ing
along a sort of cutting or groove,
made by their own countless foot
steps.
l observed that besides the ordin-
AIRY ants, not much larger than our
own English insects, there were 9th
ers, of about twice the size Of their
smaller brethren, and armed with a
huge, horny palr of "pincers" on the
head. These insects always station.
ed themselves on the brow of the
cutting, occasionally patrollng up
and down, and evidently surveyed
the movements OF their friends be-
low. l never saw those larger IN
sects carving Il burden, or in any
way assisting in the labors of the
common ants; they seemed to me TO
act as a sort Of leader, to direct the
march of their brethern. l once
placed distractions in the trench to
observe the conduct of the insects;
l noticed that if the material was
soft enough, the ants broke it up and
carried it clear of the trench, by
morsels; but stone, too heavy to
move and to hard to break up, they
left alone, simply tunneling under it
While some Of the insects were
thus occupied, the column left the
trench for the time, and as soon as
all was clear, returned to the old
course. l may as well mention that
on these migratory marches the ants
do not carry any burdens, either food
or pupa, as we see them do in Eng
land. l found by experiment that
if the few leading ants were destroy
ed, the whole column turned back
and retired; and if some insects i'll
the center were killed so as to break
the column, those behind retired !;
those in front went on. Here, it is
evident that some means OF commun'
icaton must exist between them, for
these advances and retreats were sim
ultaneous and without confusion.
With an anecdote of what remarka,
BILE organizations these minute crea-
lures are capable, l will conclude
this somewhat protracted letter.
One morning friend and | watch
ed column of ants starting from
their home in the mud walls of hut
in our camp, and determined to fol
low them to their destination. They
marched straight to the parapet
mounted it's ipner face, descended in
to the trench, and then mounted the
opposite side and proceeded to the
open ground there. They directed
their course to small mound OF
fresh earth, and there the leading in.
sects halted, remaining at the foot OF
the hillock until the whole force was
present. | have calculated the mum
ber of this Lillipution army by the
distance their column extended, al
lowing an average of four abreast,
and length of one-eighth of an inch
to each section of four, to be about
1924, exclusive of the larger in.
sects.
When the whole force was assem-
blcd, the little army divided; one
part remained at the foot of the
mound and ran ronnd and round it,
the rest mounted to the top, and
some of them entered the loose earth
and speedily returned, each bearing
u young grasshopper or cricket, dead.
which he deposited upon the ground
and returned for fresh load. Those
who had remained on the outside OF
the mound, took up the crickets as
they were brought out of the earth,
and bore them down to the base OF
the hill, returning for fresh load.
Soon the contents Of the mound
seemed to be exhausted, and then the
whole force returned home by the
same route as before into the trench
and over the parapet, each with his
burden of cricket food for the com
munity.
must confess that had l not seen
this with my own eyes, | could not
have believed it, for here was regu
lar toray planned and executed with
military precision, the country sur
veyed and the depot of provisions
known accurately before the march
was made, and at the mound the pru-
dental divisions of labor, and the
care taken that none of their victims
should escape. In conclusion, l
would say, that improbable as these
facts may seem, yet they were wit
messed by myself and my friend, and
and we returned to our camp, Won
dering at the greatness of that Great