56 THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



At 5.44 with 4 friends. 



(39 journeys : 11 alone, 28 with 120 friends.) 



Thus, during these two hours, more than one hundred and twenty- 

 ants came out of the nest, in company with the one under observa- 

 tion. She knew her way perfectly, and it is clear that, if she had 

 been left alone, all these ants would have accompanied her to the store 

 of food. Three of them were accidentally allowed to do so, but of 

 the remainder only five found their way to the food; all the others, 

 after wandering about awhile, returned empty-handed to the nest. 



I conclude, then, that when large numbers of ants come to food 

 they follow one another, being also to a certain extent guided by 

 scent. The fact, therefore, does not imply any considerable power 

 of intercommunication. There are, moreover, some circumstances 

 which seem to point in an opposite direction. For instance, I have 

 already mentioned that if a colony of Polyergus changes the situation 

 of its nest, the masters are all carried to the new one by the slaves. 

 Again, if a number of F. fusca are put in a box, and in one corner a 

 dark place of retreat is provided for them with some earth, one soon 

 finds her way to it. She then comes out again, and, going up to one 

 of the others, takes her by the jaws. The second ant then rolls her- 

 self into a heap, and is carried off" to the place of shelter. They then 

 both repeat the same manoeuvre with other ants, and so on until all 

 their companions are collected together. Now, it seems to me difli- 

 cult to imagine that so slow a course would be adopted if they pos- 

 sessed any power of communicating description. 



On the other hand, they certainly can, I think, transmit simpler 



