New-York tribune., 1910-08-28
THE CHAIN OF DESTRUC CTION
By Guy E. Mitchell

WE had been sitting for sometime in the cool
w shade of the big piazza smoking the Captains
perfectos home rolled by the wives of his native In
dian banana cutters 1t was a number of years ago.
when the general srppOsitiOn that the Central
American would be chosen for the interOceaniC
canal; and Nicaragua contained many Americans, who
had invested in banana cocoa, coffee lands, both
in the expectation of making good money out of the i'm
mediate crops, and further of being the ground
floor when the big ditch should be decided upon.
well, will tell you my little chain of destruction
story as have called it, remarked the Captain 1T is
not unlike some of Captain Mayne Reds boy-hunter
yarns, only this really happened. | should have
been bitterly disappointed, though when | was boy,
if had had to believe that any of Mayne Reds stories
not exactly truthful chronicles of adventures.
But here the facts about my chain of destruction
"One bright morning in May, before the rainy season
had set in, took native hunter and started out with
Winchester in hand and pistol in belt to trail peccare
or wild hogs and procure possible fresh supply of our
of the bananas and struck into the dark virgin for
est, the Indian cutting slight trail with his heavy,
keen edged machete which hesWung against the gowhs
Of vines and undeTbrush as lightly whip. We had
gone only short distance when noticed great fut
tering of birds ahead
Warrior ants said the Indian.
Fighting ants they were indeed big black fellows,
and thousands millions, OF them. They formed dark
belt eight ten feet wide OF solid rapidly moving ants,
with here and there thinner lines of foragerS reaching
out along the sides. As they passed the ground
they attacked and devoured every insect bug and
encountered. They were flesh eating ants. When an
army OF warrior ants finds house IN its pathway in
Central America, the people out, and when they
return there IS not vestge remaining of animal in
sect life. These ants then what had attracted
the numerous birds that flying about and now
and then swoopng down among them. But no, they
were not eating the ants. Their victims the
fortunate flies, moths, and other insects which, alarmed
by the ants, were attempting to their wings
of escape. They only fell prey the activity of
the birds. We stood looking at them for a few minutes
before attempting to get their line. No living
creature not the fierce cougar darcs brave the
fearless army ants with their short, powerful forccps
the pinch of which will draw blood
A was backing off for a running Jump across the
line unusual movement attracted my attention.
Two brilliantly plumcd trogons started in chase of
large winged insect which the ants had startled into
flight. Both were determined upon securing the NOR
sci, and when it made a futile dodge to escape both
pOunCed upon from different directions and utercd
to the ground fighting for their prey. They apparently
forgot the usual caution of birds when in the vicinity of
army ants and did not notice that they fighting very
near of the side tOraging lines of the warriors
Zone now seen quickly To lose interest in the
insect for whose possession he had been striving and
fly up a low limb and begin picking among his
feathers The other appeared badly disconnected.
He had evidently been attacked and bitten by num-
Der of the fierce He tuttercd away a few steps
then and tiOundercd directly toward vhrr.