The Dalles times-mountaineer. [volume] (The Dalles, Or.) 1882-1904, 1896-12-19
WARRIOR ANTS.
Terrors Of Their Advancing Cols
umn When on the March.
Every Living Thing Is Compelled -
Flee Before or Be Speedily
Overwhelmed and De-
voured.

It was in Honduras, near the Carib-
bean coast, while on government
survey, says a correspondent OF the
Omaha World-Herald, that | first saw
the warrior ants-those strange insects
which march through the tropical for
ests in armies, attacking every living
creature in their path. One intensely
hot day, rs sat in n hammock under
the thatched roof of my bamboo hut, q
native came running in, and, with ex-
cited gestures, badc me follow him.
did so wonderingly, and, going out
into the open, looked in the direction
he indicated. There on the rolling
savannah stretched Z wide black belt
extending far back into the deep shad-
ows of the adjacent forest. 1t rose and
fell with every formation of the
ground, and, like a huge snake, slowly
crept toward the village. "Thc war
rior ants" explained the native il q
strange patois of English and Spanish
which l shall not attempt to initiate
''They will soon be here" he con-
tinued. ''You had better unite your
dogs or the ants will kill them" Act
ing upon his advice ] loosencd rly
dogs, and, retiring to Q safe distance,
watched the approach OF the warriors.
In countless multi.nles they swarmed
over the plain. marching in compact
order like n well-drillcd army. before
them scurried Heterogeneous mass of
lizards, grasshoppers, frogs. beetles
and other manner of insects and rep
tiles, in wild scamper to reach o
place of safety
Presently the advance guard reached
my hut and disappeared within; then
the main column appeared, and soon
the roof, floor, walls and raftcrs were
black with them. Like the soft rustic
of dried grass stirred by gentle
breeze came the sound OF their pres
ence in the leaves of my thatchcd roof.
The sound increased in loudncss rs
the rats, mice. lizards, coclSroachcs,
centipedes and others their ills, who
had long made the roof of their home,
tried vainly to escape. Some succeed
ed in getting away from the house,
but only to fail victims to the Sur
rounding hordes without. One large
cockroach, noticed, made n pluclsy
fight, but, overpowered by numbers,
he gradually relaxed his efforts and
was soon dismembered, each ant car
ryirg off a portion of his body as y
trophy. -.s;:.
The most exciting battle was WEI .
snake about three feet l5ng, that tried
to slip away unseen. The ants quickly
surrounded him, however, and fought
with terrible ferocity. With every
switch of his tail the snake killed a
L. + l..,E fhnrv-
places were soon filed by the black
swarm which swept increasingly on.
Finally the writings of the snake be-
came fainter and fainter, and at last
ceased entirely, and then, and not un-
til then, did the ants relinquish their
attack. All day long they marched
through the house until at shutdown
the end of the column had passed and
was lost to view in the thickness OF
the forest. / entered the house and
prepared to survey ruefully my lardcr,
but my anticipations of sorrow were
premature, for there were all my rro-
visions as had left them, untouched.
There was but one eXception-n poor
turkey which had tied to a stake that
morning, intending to keep him alive
for few days before making him into
soup. He was stone dead, but the
rumpled earth about him showed that
he had made hard fight for life. rot
a dead ant was to be seen, they Lad all
been carried off by their comrades. 1
afterward learned that the warrior
ants refuse to touch any food that they
themselves have not caught and slain,
which accounted for my provisions re-
manning unmolested. was overjoyed
at the change in my house-aot
cockroach, lizard or any other insect
or reptile was left; they had been com
pletely exterminated.