The Savannah morning news., 1900-07-01

Der, by preference the sill of a barn. or
low set house. They remain in il half
dormant throughout cold weather.
stirring sluggishly to feed. and look after
the eggs. When the eggs hatch the young
ants grow very fast, especially the wings
They are furnished with single pair at
tached little way back of the head. and
little longer than the body itself. It
is by their presence or absence you dis
tinguish the young ants from the vet
Grams.
Full grown the insects are about three
quarters of an inch in length. sNotwith-
standing they do not bite so quickly nor
so painfully as the little black ant-the
ant par excellence of proverbs and hLs
tory. All the big black ants migrate
but only the young ones come out in a
swarm. Almost invariably they begin
flying in the morning, when the sun is AN
hour or two high. Evidently the migra
ton is prearranged. Sometimes it begins
in the midst of a light shower. but checks
quickly after the advance guard has been
beaten down. Given a fair day and big
nest the ants fly out like the waters of a
fountain, the wings of soft silver grav
shnmerng delicately in the sunshine
The stream of them spreads fanwise
and sometimes reaches more than ward
from the nest. AS they touch ground the
winged ants fold their pinions above theiR
backs and scurry away; apparently in the
dlrest confusion, but really 10 meet a lit
lie later, mass themselves and go In
search of new home.
Right there the odd part comes. nv tha
time they do meet, the wings have been
shed. Some few shed in the flying out
then the unwinged drop at once and
run off. 1t is uncertain whether or no
the unwinging was accident or design.
what is certain is that the wings are
very slightly attached. Feathered folk.
Wild and tame, are fond OF young ants.
and gather to the swarming as to-! feass
Hens or blackbirds in flock almost upset
each other in their eagerness TO catch
ants before they settle But after they
are caught the captors do not swallow
them at once. Instead, they hold the ant
firmly in the beak and strike 1t against
the ground until the wings fall off then
gulp it down. Country people say the
wings are poison. The say is borne OUT
by the fate of a mother turkey, who dis
covered ants just swarming and called
her brood to eat them. BY certain little
cries she seemed 10 warn as we'll as call
them. But she was very hungry, and
after she had shown her children the
safe way of breakfasting, she began her
self to swallow ants as fast as she could
catch them. An hour afterward she died
in great agony, writing her neck and
thrusting her crop against the ground to
the very last fiutter. But not single
young one was harmed.
Ants of all sorts are gregarious but
these big fellows do not feed and range
together as do the little ones. The small
black ant, Aesop's p!smire is far from
being the pattern of all the virtues he is
commonly accounted. AT heart he is a roy
alist, agreeing with Capt Marryatt,, that
Kingdom is strong as pyramid is. be-
cause it runs to point at the top, hence
is easier to endure than to overturu His
community is highly organized. more so
even than those of the honey bee The
most important personages in it.. how
ever. are not the royalties, but as In big
ger kingdoms. the individuals who go OUT
seeking what royalty and commonalty
may devour.
They are rangers. no bigger than their
fellows, but ever 50 much holder, and
more intelligent. They go everywher,-
to the tops of trees. or houses, all along
fences. or through the depth and dark
ness of cellars and crannied walls. Once
let them find something eatable. partic-
ularly something sweet as lump of su-
gar, smear of spilled honey, sor green
leaves full of honey-dew. they strike
straight for the nest, as they go in some
mysterious fashion, blazing a path by
which the working rank and file may car
ry the treasure in.
This path is barely broad enough for
two lines of ants to travel. The workers
go out one behind the other and come in
the same way. 1t happens sometimes
that a rogue-ant going out light, tries to
take away the load an industrious one.
coming to the nest full-freiehted. Ant
burdens are carried on the head, held fast
by the mandfbles, so as to escape contact
with the ground. The rogue-ant seizes
f1.a A4aA A-s1
stantly both rise upon their hind feet,
striking at each other with their forelegs,
then turn sidewise of the path, so as to
block 1t. Crowds quickly gather either
side of them-crowds which bunch and
crawl over each other in the effort to see
the fight much after the manner of men.
Ii dos not last long-one or the other
gives in and the tangie straightens itself.
1t also happens sometimes that an ant
struggling home with a load twice as big
as himself gets helping head, or even
two heads, if needed. But the helpers do
not seize upon his treasure. Instead,
they pass him. then turn and push their
heads under the load spreading their
bodies fanwise. A very big thing, such
as grain of wheat or rice, may be car
ried home by four-three pushing 1t, d
fourth supporting it in front, standing al
most upright and walking backward, with
AANlNlONo i1AhN4A6 steps IDuI Ills - OIliy
when rain threatens. Ants are wonder
fully weather-wise. In the season of
honey-dew, six hours before storm, they
will so crowd the waths to it, they over
run each other coming and going, so
that what should be a hurrying, black line
breaks up into angry knots and punches.
Blocking their paths either by accident
or design sets up a great pother among
them until ranger comes. A pebble, a
ninPh n earth a IF wa Tor will
block it, thus seeming to proce that the
making is a matter of scent. Almost in
variaby the rangers lay the new path
out, around, not over the obstruction,
which is odd, considering that ants crawl
pward with as much ease as downward.
The paths are, of course, invisible, even
when they cross bare earth. But there
are few more entertaining patmes for a
summer Afternoon than to lie fiat upon the
grass beside one and watch the passengers
upon it,