Mexico Missouri message. (Mexico, Audrain County, Mo.) 1899-1918, 1916-07-13
WOODCRAFT STORIES
FOR LITTLE CHILDREN
Fourteenth Story.
By L. Roy Ferris.

Old Mr. Ant the funniest little fellow and there are
SO many in the family He couldn't begin to count his re-
atonS tor the reason that they always moving around
SO fast he would all mixed up unless made his count
at night but he would miss of them then for YOU
know the family is we'll regulated household and
everybody doesn't get home time from the ant picture
show from listening the bull frog chorus whv thew
are locked out and there such thing pass key Ell
ther lhe ants inside stop up the door with leaves and
small pebbles and there they are locked out
Besides they have queens and what the queen says is
law in the ant kingdom.
One of the funniest things about the ant is that tbe,,
all help take of baby brother and sister If some boy
digs down in the nest just what there each ant
grabs an egg or baby in its mouth and hurry away to
safety SO remember, Sammy, when mother asks YOU to
mind the baby while she hangs the clothes no matter
how the sh are biting and how good the swimming you
are not doing any than any little ant would do And
they only tend the baby but they take it way down in
the ground where it is cool when the shines hot and if
1t is too cool down in the ground they take it up into the
sunshine That's done to keep the baby from having
the collie, suppose.
them one time for when she the worker ants grab
her and pull her wings off and then she stays at home she
is needed at home with the children anyway And they do
believe in soldiers every other is soldier And how
they can fight when their neghbors try clean house for
them. - ~ .4-swsseAzEW
One day when little Bud the Camp Bows little brot6
er, grew tired of chasing butterflies and hunting Mother
Soft Shells nest he sat down close the ants house
we are telling about, and taking chubby fist smashed
III top OF tlelr mouse Just to the mmed
ately the workers running Just like YOU did the
time the old cherry tree fell the front porch was quite
calamity for 1t had taken them several weeks build it,
And Bud them here there and everywhere everv
fellow was doing his duty carrying eggs some baby
ants and some food and others trying to patch up the
crumbng roof And Bud noticed that stream of ants
carried kernels of from the hole in the ground and
each kernel pnched off the end and Buds brother
explained later that that done by the ants to keep the
corn from sproung while is stored away winter food
And the funniest thing OF all took place Two of the are-
est ants ran to the little stream and saught hold stick
near the waters edge and caught hold of their
bodies, and until they had bridge across the mar
row stream and then the whole colony passed over
safety And after that Bud sat looking and wonder
ing at what had taken place large ant that some way or
another had been left behind climbed Buds neck and
gave him good bite for spelling their house
And Brother Rabbit who had been looking on from 4
bunch OF grass bv and the time talking Bro
Coon, said: Serves him right
But when the big began to gather in Buds bic
blue eyes Brother Coon remarked Il don't think So and
besides don't like ants anyway, and besides intend to
dig up every ant house find so there now"