Daily independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 188?-1915, 1890-02-01
LIFE IN THE TROPICS.


am not sure If the Indian ants are
identical with those which are the sub
jects Of Sir John Lubbocks interesting
experiments. When man arrives in
Calcutta his acquaintance with the
small red ants soon begins. I shall
never forget the jump that friend gave
when he first saw q train OF red ants on
the floor He was stout Englishman,
newly arrived from home, and with an
innate horror of insect life. He thought
the train of ants was a snake. They
were merely marauding party out on
an expedition to plumber the sugar
basin on the breakfast table. Some
active ant scout had discovered that one
end Of the table-cloth touched the
ground, and 80 afforded passage to the
sugar on the breakfast table. Instantly
the expedition had been organized, and
there was q continuous stream of ants
from the hole in the wall where they
dwelt, along the floor, up the table,
cloth, on to the sugar basin. With
Bideboard in which any thing sweet is
kept 1T is usual to put brass saucers full
of water under the feet, so as to keep
the ants out. The water must be con-
htantly changed, for If it gets covered
with dust, or any debris that will carry
the weight OF an ant, the little reAtures
Soon End 1t out and cross the moat 1t
is always expedient to have the feet of
your bed planted in brass saucers, full of
water, 80 as to prevent the ants getting up
into the bed. was acquainted with a
lady who suffered severely from neglect
ing this precaution. The doctor had
given her some ointment to rub on her
arm for rheumatic pain, and she ap-
piled 1T when she went to bed. During
the night she suffered considerable pain.
which she attributed to the working OF
the ointment. When daylight came
great was her horror to find that she
was being eaten alive by swarm of
red ants, which had been attracted by
some sweet ingredient in the ointment,
and had bitten through her skin into
her flesh, SO that she carried the scars of
the wounds to her grave. No doubt the
rheumatic pain was cured, but the rem
edy was good deal worse than the dis
ease. The large red ants, similar to
those described in the Queens Scotch
Journal as attacking a royal Princess,
are usually met with out shooting. AS
you are passing under tree in your
hoWdah the elephant puts up his trunk
at the bidding of the Mahout to break
of some projecting branch, and in an
instant you find yourself covered with
shower OF red ants who have been
picnicking on that particular branch.
had not many encounters with the
large black ants, which affect q rather
drier climate than Calcutta. But in a
house where there is colony of large
ta fol
from their ravages, and their bite Is
quite as savage and painful as that OF
Che large red aDts. The white ants prob
ably take the CAKE" according to mod
ern phraseology, as the greatest nui-
sances of their kind. A white ant has
several forms, but perhaps his most dan
gerous form Is that in which he is more
like white maggot than an ordinary
ant. In this maggot form the white
ants work under cover of o tunneling
of soft mud. which they manufacture for
themselves, possibly with the intention
OF ooncealing their mischief. But the
tunnel fortunately betrays them, and no
tire should be lost in breaking open
the tunnel and destroying the working
party that will be found inside. II an
unwary traveller, arriving late at
night leaves his portmanteau on
the floor of his room in the
vicinity OF white ants, he will probably
discover In the morning that the enemy
have found their way in and made havoc
W'hts garments. They will carry their
tunnel up the leg Of table or sideboard
to get at the contents of a drawer.
Nothing Is sacred to them. In the pub
Tic ohces OF Government the white ant
Is ready to make himself record keeper.
he gets into a bundle Of papers and eats
them la reference is needed to some old
paper, the clerk who goes to the bundle
hnds that 1t has been resolved into a
mass OF muddy pulp. knew case
where they ate some bank notes in
native merchants chest, but luckily for
him tho frapmnnta Nunra idnn nhla