388 Miscellaneous. 



The labour was severe to carry the berries up this path, but the 

 struggle was great to get them to the top of the perpendicular spot. 

 In performing this feat the berry-carriers met with many falls, often 

 rolling 1 or 2 feet down the hill ; but always sticking fast to their 

 burdens, and trying again until they finally triumphed. One fell 

 when near the top, and as he came up again and was about to suc- 

 ceed, I touched his load with the point of a knife, and down it and 

 the ant went. His third attempt was put to the same test, but 

 even then he did not get angry, or show the least impatience, but 

 cheerfully took his berry, and went up and in at the door of the long 

 avenue. 



A lady lately showed me a safe where she kept sugar and sweetmeats 

 which drew swarms of small ants. The legs of the safe were then 

 placed in vessels of water, and the ants did not succeed in reaching 

 the sweets during several days, but finally many of them were found 

 in the sugar. After some little study to discover how they got there, 

 they were seen to drop on the safe from the roof at the distance of 

 about 2 feet above. These, however, were not the Cutting Ants. 



The Cutting Ants often assist each other. I saw one which fell with 

 a hack-berry at the vertical place before named. The berry got loose 

 from him, and, instead of shouldering it again, he tried to drag it along, 

 but was unable to pull it up the perpendicular. Many passed him 

 and gave the cold shoulder ; finally a kind ant came and pushed. 

 By shoving and pulling, the two succeeded in getting the berry to the 

 top, when the assister immediately left, and started down the hill. 

 They live on both animal and vegetable food. I have seen them 

 carrying worms and bugs. Whole beetles and numerous elytra 

 have been found in their cells, but nothing indicating that they lay 

 ap large stores of food, like some of the East India ants, which have 

 been seen to fetch their stores of corn to the surface to dry after 

 heavy rains. The common Tumbler Bug (Coprobius Icevis), in rolling 

 his ball, sometimes heedlessly backs up over a nest of the Cutting Ant, 

 and falls a victim, being overcome by numbers. Once I saw a very 

 large one roll his ball into their midst, when he was fiercely attacked 

 by the multitude. At first he stuck his nose in the sand, or rather 

 between his fore legs, but the bites behind were so severe that he 

 roused and flew in circles, finally alighting near me, which was no 

 sooner done than an ant who accompanied the flight jumped to the 

 ground, for a moment looked bewildered, then ran home 3 it may be 

 to tell of his wonderful ride on the big bug. 



Great is the damage which these ants do by destroying trees and 

 vegetables. I know of one family who are about to leave a beauti- 

 ful situation near a fine spring because the Cutting Ants have nearly 

 killed their fruit-trees and ornamental shrubbery, especially roses, for 

 which they have a peculiar fondness. They have been known to strip 

 a fruit-tree of its leaves in a single night. In some sections these ants 

 prevent the cultivation of fruit. Thousands of dollars have been 

 uselessly spent in attempts to kill them by blowing noxious gases into 

 their dens, or by placing poison at the doorways of their dwellings. 

 A knowledge of the habits and abodes of these insects shows the futility 



