Lawrence democrat. (Lawrenceburg, Tenn.) 1884-1925, 1891-11-06
A NOVEL DUEL ON A BAR.
Six Bottles of Wine and Sixty Dollars
Wagered on the Result.

Six Bottles of Wine and Sixty Dollars
Wagered on the Result.
A number Of flies had settled on one
end of the bar at well-known uptown
resort, the other afternoon, attracted
by few drops of a sweet drink that
had been spilled. A group of customers
of the place stood near, but the tipping
flies were objects of no interest to them
until one of the group discovered a red
dish brown ant moving in very bust
ness-like manner toward the flies. The
presence of an ant of that kind in such
place was something so unheard of
that every person in the house became
interested in it at once. The ant hur-
ried along until it was within three or
four inches of the flies and then stopped
and seemed to be making recon
noisance. Presently it advanced in a
cautious siding manner toward the
flies again.
The flies were apparently so much
engaged in absorbing the strange deli
cacy they had come upon that they did
not notice the approach of the ant, and
even if they had there was nothing in
the manner of the insect to strike them
with alarm. The ant sidled along until
1t was close to the unsuspecting flies,
when it made sudden dash and seized
fly by one of its wings. This created
panic among the flies, and the I'M
lucky one was left struggling to escape
from its captor. The fly was more than
twice the size of the ant, and if the lat
ter had seized the former by leg OR
by the body the fly would have had nc
difficulty in bearing the ant away,
whatever its ultimate fate might have
been; but the willy ant undoubtedly had
calculated on that when it made it's at.
tack on the fly, and by grabbing it by
the wing made it impossible for it tc
rise.
In the struggle that followed the an:
was tumbled and rolled and pounded
about by the big fly as a bear might
tumble q woodchuck which presumed
to give 1t fight But the ant held on
and presently accomplished what it hat
set out to do, probably, from the first
1t cut the wing from the fly, close t.
the body, and thus put an end to the in
sect's power.of fight The attack o
the ant on the fly excited the most in
tense interest in the group of specta
tors from the start. and when the an
disabled the fly, after the lively rough
and tum BILE round, dozen bets wer
quickly made on the result, the odd
being in favor OF the ant.
The fly, unable to take wing, tried t.
escape by running, but the ant was up
on it again in second, and again the,
wrestled about on the bar By thi
time two or three of the fly's compan
ions had recovered themselves sufficient
ly to comprehend the trouble it was in
and came back to aid it. They plumpe,
down on the wrestler and managed t
break it's hold on the fly before an.
further perceptible injury had bee
done, but the ant dashed boldly to tn
fight again, and grabbed one of tn
newcomers by the leg. This fly ros
from the bar, taking the ant with il
but the ant nipped the leg off, tumble
back on the bar again, and without al
instants delay started in pursuit G
the crippled fly, which was being helr
ed along by its remaining comrades.
They might have succeeded in gettin
the crippled fly to some place of safety
but the spectators who had bet on tn
ant interfered at this point and chase
the rescuing contingent away. The ar
then pitched into the one winged fly
and after another lively wrestle cut til
remaining wing off. All this time tn
other flies were making efforts to &c
to their imperilled companions assis
ance, and had to be kept out of tn
fight by the spectators. After snippin
off the fy's second wing the ant bold
grasped the insect by the head, anC
throwing it over his shoulder as lior
ess might deer.it had captured, trotte
off with its prey, climbed down the en-
of the bar, and disappeared in a hol
behind it. Sixty dollars in money an
six bottles of wine were lost and wo
on the exciting ant and fly duel, whic
, lasted five minutes N. Y. Sun.