34 ANTS. 



when they are climbing up ; they take hold 

 of it again, when they can find it ; otherwise 

 they look for another, or take something else, 

 being ashamed to return to their nest without 

 bringing something. This I have experi- 

 enced, by taking away the grain which 

 they looked for. All these experiments may 

 easily be made by any one that has patience 

 enough. They do not require so great a 

 patience as that of Ants ; but few people are 

 capable of it. 



Thus my Ants were forced to make shift 

 for a livelihood, when I had shut up the 

 garret, out of which they used to fetch their 

 provisions. At last being sensible that it 

 would be a long time before they could dis-- 

 cover the small heap of corn which I had 

 laid up for them, I resolved to show it to 

 them. 



In order to know how far their industry 

 could reach, I contrived an expedient, which 

 had good success : the thing will appear in- 

 credible to those who never considered, that 

 all animals of the same kind, which form a 

 society, are more knowing than others. I 

 took one of the largest Ants and threw her 



