Kootenai County Republican. (Rathdrum, Idaho) 1899-1903, 1899-09-08
ANTS AS FIGHTERS.
u%e TINY va sgaioRs ARE FERocIous
m BATTLE

Lasvsss AsSmals Dare Net Meet
Tbe0 - Combat - Mas Whsn'
Yasss uStss 1ass . aavias Mastsr.
II was one Of six American miners
mo were routed from their camp by =
venexuelap ant army" said n mining
expert who lately arrived from yene-
su0la- I'VE retrested before the In
vaderS without making fight. and for
two good reasons. In the firSt place
We would have got the worst Of tho
encounter. aud. secondly. we knaw
that IL VIC let them alone they would
20 M . good service.
''Ehottiy after dawn one Sunday our
native cook burst In upon us with the
news that No we've ai,ot; 10 .;a attack.
"a BY an army Of ants. We Ind heard
enough abeut ant armies tn know
what 70 do. We arose hastily. and cv-
cry ounce OF provisions that Vac not
sealed III cans or iI; jass .-ss hn-r!ca!y
p!led on a. ahls. the four legs or which
wurU- immersed In as many bnnins Of
9atss- livery manenyer that Is known
70 the armies of civilized humans you
may safely expect from an ant army.
but the little black warriors hay. never
ttayUed to swim. Our provisions thus
protected. We ica the camp TO itself
end went out to reconnoitcr for the in
vadcrs and 10 watch their assault
from \ distance. The array was max
Ing fair. time. An irregular patch Of
black 10 feet wilde und double as long
was swarmlng steadily toward our
camp Az the army was Ia no way
disturbed by our presence II was pos
sil,ss to approach la lines closely.
There must have been millions upon
ssiilions of little soldiers marching hip
u hip.l AT the head marched this lead
CT. On went the army. up the posts
u thu camp and then within,
"Oucc within. the army spread itself
In all directions. forming hundreds OF
sHtis attacking parties. The camp was
an old palm matched affair and so In
tested with scorpions. eentipcds ana
spiders that we had been on the point
OF destroying H. Now, however. tho
ants Ind como and would clean house
for N. aud therefore they were wei.
cpm~ The ants swar,nrd up the jolats
and the dry ieafy walls. aud wherever
there was a spider OF q hug there was
q brief tssaie aud n dead foe. Hut
thsrc was bigger game III store for tho
Invaders
Tho star battle was with an im-
mcnso ccneipvd. one Of tho blush
gray Kind. about seven inches long and
~ big around as your middle finger.
He dartcd out Of u hole like n blue
streak. evidently trusting to his speed
and superior strength to run through
the eDemy's rahks. iius he didn't 20
three fest before hc was stopped Ants
literally covered him. iis turned on
himself and swept them FROM his back.
but before be had gone another three
fest I've was buried beneath another
swarm Of his piacky assailants And
then began hight to tho death. Again
and again he swept his tormentors
from hts back whiio from all sides
hurrird streams vi ants TO take tho
place or fa!ssn comrades The wr!g-
sjiug or tho bi. fellow became less vio-
rent as the light progrcascd. and final.
~, afrer an effort. which we'll know
was q desperate last une. he renained
1uaet while what little life was l.ft Ia
him WAS bitten out OF hlm. Later, when
the army had retres,cd and when VIZ
had swept up the ecntipeda and seor.
pions aud lizards and tarantula
which I'll. ant army had vanqulshe.i,
wc put the hero ~ tho star battle un.
der q auAstA Inaxnlfying glass The
hosiies VI dead ants stu chung To- their
fec. FROM his hack. from his iegs.
from wherever there was chance for
= hold. The bodies OF anta .dangled. hold.
'sg o.. avsposes 10y their teeth.
"tvrbhps you wonder what would
happen ~ fuan who would under
ssks 10 .ixht an array OF ants, assnu.
'nS. Of course, that the uian relies on
ala natpral neans Of defense
hands and fset can beat illustrate
that by tn. rare story OF an unfortu
nate vhe was br9uGh, ~ hospital In
1Afacas shortly before my return
hem~. Tho man Was eoolie who had
worked on n cocoa plantation Ia creek
not far from Caracas Following "A
habit % some OF HI. eouasrymea. tho
coclie. owing 10 the heat, had left his
emp and stretched himself on the
ground - sleep eu'lsera EXACTLY
What ssltcwesi tao cue eau say with Ger.
sainty. Presumably he WAS surrounded
and coyervi 10y an army Of ants bs
sorv be awakened. Al dawn the shrek
and eries Of u,an In agony aroused
the innaases OF the camp who ran Oh,
" learn the cause.
The man Was xeatieulatins wildly
and calling for hslp whilcd he sluIrm
81 and wrishea aud siapped bis face
and mech and chest ana i~gs in a mad
effort ~ sisr hisn.slf ali ever Al eaev.
Tie Was standing in tho pl,lst OF az
sftny Of anss aud was too distracted
WITH pain 10 run Away Theu hs did
exactly what panther or leopard does
when 10 70 belnx osstro,neA The man
tafvw himself 10 the ground 10 roll his
eoFmvnser so death. A .iagls sctiv.
white man could have saved the poor
ur~s~h. bur tho stagreeed. harvi~sgvss
rs.,siss dared tot. ~ though, not. Of
Fss~ue. while tho victim blm.sif wa.
~ erased NTH sspny to seek other