282 HITNRY C. MCCOOK. 



to occur during a week's stay upon the field. However, my anticipa- 

 tions were not realized ; on the contrary my experiments revealed a 

 surprising state of amity if not of confederation between the inhabit- 

 ants of the several hills. The nature and results of these experiments 

 may be gathered from the following examples. A small oak branch 

 covered with aphides and their attendant ants was broken from a tree 

 and placed erect upon a hill twenty rods distant. It was thought that 

 if anything would incite to hostility it would be a meeting of members 

 of separate communities upon the same feeding grounds. On the 

 contrary, ants issued from the hill, mounted the branch with the usual 

 tokens of excitement, and then mingling with the original occupants of 

 the twig, began quietly to feed from the galls and aphides. A larger 

 branch, having many more ants upon it, was cut, and planted upon a 

 hill a considerable distance beyond the first. The insects were called 

 out by tapping upon the surface. They issued with the usual whirl of 

 excitement and anger and, as before, blended with the intruded ants 

 without a sign of hostility. A spade full of earth was now taken from 

 a hill, placed together with ants, cocoons and broken cells within a pail, 

 carried to a hill some fifty rods distant and thrown upon the surface, 

 and around the lower entrances. I could not of course distinguish 

 between the respective members of the hills, as the masses of excited 

 ants poured forth and began their usual movements, but I observed 

 no sign of hostility j the imported ants melted away into the general 

 community as if at home. 



The only other test of this nature which need be mentioned was 

 made upon three hills, say, A, B and C, which were found in such an 

 unusually excited condition that they are down in my note book as the 

 " hysterical hills." By the way, I visited them on the day after the 

 shower referred to above, in order to see if they had set to work at 

 building, like their sister cities, and if such occupation had quieted 

 their nerves. It was as I had imagined j they were busy and greatly 

 subdued, honest and hearty toil having quieted them very much as it 

 does over nervous human beings. Large pieces of the cones of A and 

 B, which are twelve feet apart, were interchanged, tossed from one to 

 another, and although swarming with insects in the most intense state 

 of excitement, there was no appearance of hostility. I then proceeded 

 to C, 114 ft. distant, and called out the ants until the cone was fairly 

 black with them. From the densest centre of life, I swiftly cut out a 

 section about six inches square, and bore it hurriedly to B, catching 

 the dropping ants in my hat as I ran. The contents of shovel and hat 

 were thrown upon B, in the midst of its hosts of inhabitants. The 



