INSTINCT 91 



from generation to generation until it becomes an in- 

 stinct ; that is, instincts are "inherited habits." Other 

 authorities believe that instinct is due to natural selec- 

 tion. Insects with certain habits favorable to their exist- 

 ence live to reproduce in kind, while those without these 

 characteristics perish before they have brought forth 

 young. For instance, according to this view, the earlier 

 generations of wasps did not all sting. Those that did 

 not sting were more liable to succumb when attacked, 

 while those who used their stings vigorously survived, 

 and lived to beget forms with a tendency to sting. In 

 time the stinging wasps were the only ones left, and 

 among them the most violent stingers would still be the 

 most liable to perpetuate the species. 



Acts of Mature Life. Among the best examples of in- 

 stinctive acts of mature life, stand the interesting habits 

 of insects. The making of homes, the homing instinct, 

 as already noted, in the case of bees and wasps (pp. 

 79, SO), the waging of wars and the making of slaves 

 among ants (pp. 81, 8:2), are examples of this class 

 of instincts. It must be conceded that every individual 

 is not likely to perform these acts in identically the 

 same manner, and further, that there is a possibilitv 

 of action somewhat intelligent while in the performance 

 of these instinctive acts of mature life. It is not at all 

 likely that every Ammophila (p. G8) makes use of a 

 pebble in the work of storing food for the sustenance 

 of offspring. To those that do this, intelligent action 

 must be accredited. Such insects have profited by the 

 experiences of their own lives. 



Acts Associated with Reproduction. - The construction 

 of homes and the storage of food for their voung are the 



