The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1896-04-04

ana, besides, the mines al tray 8,
you know, are shut down now, and
those at San Vidas have more men
than they can use; SO what chance
would you have, a ranchman and not
a miner?"
That settled it; for really what
chance did he have of getting outside
work? Mining was all the kind there
was and that was overcrowded. But,
pride or no pride, they must eat to
live; and what else remained to be
eaten but prairie-dogs? Other game
was scarce while they were plenty
always plenty.
Four o'clock came; he resolutely
set his face toward the clear strip at
the far end of the valley, where all
day long hundreds of little brown
animals yelped and squeaked from
the tops of countless yellow mounds
of earth. The moment he appeared
over the brow of the knoll next this
lively scene, there followed shrill
chorus of whistles, barks and
screams; there was scampering of
little dark objects in every direction;
pause at the mounds; another
chorus of squeaks and thousand
little tails jerked in unison, instantly
nothing was in sight. A clump of
bushes at the far side, little to the
right, offered a good ambuscade. He
lay down close to the outer edge,
where he could command the whole
field. Several minutes passed. Then
whistle sounded from way across;
this was answered from near by. I'm
mediately big, fat fellow climbed
cautiously out upon neighboring
hummock of dirt.
Crack Over rolled the old chap
on his back, kicking his last kicks
but too close to his hole. For in
second he had wriggled down into it
and was out of the hunters reach.
One shot wasted. Nevertheless he
would be more careful next time.
Five, ten minutes licked away.
Not sign of life, not a sound broke
the peace. Suddenly Squires felt
something piuching him just below
the knees; a queer, creepy kind of
pinch, quite painful. He slipped his
hand down and rubbed the spot; but
it did not cease. Then another pinch
on another place, followed by half
dozen pinches on as many different
parts of his legs. This was too much;
jumping up, an agitated exclamation
escaped his lips. He commenced
dancing about, clutching at different
portions of his body, like one pos.
sessed; totally unmindful now that
several prairie-dogs had meanwhile
come up, and were gazing in aston
ishment at his strange actions. The
reason for all this can be explained in
one word-ants. He had, in his
hasty desire to obtain a good COM
mand of the field, overlooked one of
those curious, conical-shaped mounds
of sand rising foot or two above
the ground, the nest of a swarm of
the voracious red ants of the plains.
1t stood within few feet from where
he had lain.
When he had killed the last one of
his little tormentors, he took up an
other position removed farther away
from their domain. But at the same
time position having less COM
handing view of the field; the ants
nest hid particularly good part
After this he lay long time, watch
ing and waiting. Everything was
perfectly still. The village seemed
to have taken alarm.
All at once his eyes fell upon that
mound of sand. What countless
journeys those industrious little fell
lows must have made, one grain at a
time, to have built up such a-to
them mountainl Their entrances
were quite at the bottom or base of
the cone; but every grain of sand
brought up was carried to the top.
Strange, tireless ants
The western sun was getting lower
and lower. Its rays now glinted over
the tops of the distant divides and
undulations in the wide valley be-
low, causing, on grand scale, a
beautiful trellised effect in light and
shade. 1t lit up everything within
and about the immediate vale with a
wonderful soft, yellow glow, making
the hundreds of small mounds of
earth look like SO many heaps of
gold.
And the ant-hill-it fairly shonel
The tiny grains which each of the
diligent little chaps deposited, as
they rolled down glittered realistic
ally in the dying sunlight, like specks
of the precious metal itself. But was