932 RELATION OF ANTS 
they never do them any injury, which is 
the more singular, as ants pass in general 
for beings of an irritable disposition. 
But what is invariable, what I have 
always witnessed respecting the Yellow 
Ants, and what it is of some importance to 
know, is, that they have pucerons in their 
nests, and that they never destroy them: 
they, on the contrary, bring them to- 
gether, to enjoy more conveniently, the 
fluid which these insects furnish them. 
If these ants display, in this respect, an 
industry worthy of man, there are others, 
whose proceedings are not less remark- 
able, and who appear to take possession 
of the pucerons, which feed on the 
branches of trees, and the stalks of her- 
baceous plants. The ants, extremely 
jealous in preserving these insects, and 
especially those who reside near them, 
will not suffer any strangers to come and 
dispute with them the nourishment they 
offer. They drive them off with their 
mandibles, become uneasy and restless, 
and pass over the branch with every 
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