82 



The ant is now known to occur in the following localities outside of 

 the city of New Orleans: Across the river in Algiers and adjoining 

 small settlements; at West End, Spanish Fort, and Milneburg, sum- 

 mer resorts on Lake Pontchartrain ; Bay St. Louis, Miss., a summer 

 resort between New Orleans and Mobile ; along the Texas and Pacific 

 Railroad at Donaldsonville, Cheneyville, and Alexandria; along the 

 Southern Pacific at Thiboclaux, Schriever, Houma, Berwick, Morgan 

 City, Franklin, New Iberia, and Lafayette; and at Opelousas. 



It will be noticed that these points are all, excepting Opelousas and 

 the three first-named summer resorts, on main lines of the railroads 

 leading out of New Orleans. They doubtless occur at many other 

 .smaller places along these lines and in localities on other railroads 

 leading into Mississippi, Alabama, and Louisiana. Their distribu- 

 tion to summer resorts occurs through baggage and clothing as well as 

 in supplies sent from New Orleans to these points. 



In the lower part of the city one woman told me that the ants 

 appeared in her house late in June, 1904. Her baby was taken sick 

 soon afterwards and they had a great deal of trouble keeping the ants 

 away from him. The ants seemed especially attracted to the child, 

 perhaps from some odor of the sick room, and would cross coal-oil 

 bands on the bed and on chair legs in order to reach the baby. After 

 the child's death they were even more persistent in their efforts to 

 reach him. The coffin was set on a stool the legs of which were placed 

 in dishes of water with a coal-oil film. This would deter the ants for 

 only a short time, when some would get on the oil and, others follow- 

 ing, there w^ould soon be a bridge of dead ants. 



Several instances were related where ants dropped from the ceiling 

 in order to reach food or other substances they desired. An experi- 

 ment was tried with some sugar sirups on a table which stood against 

 the wall. The ants came up the w^all to reach the table. When it was 

 removed from the wall they came up the legs. Next morning the legs 

 were wrapped with cloths soaked in coal oil and the table removed 

 some distance from the w^all. That day the ants were persistent in 

 their efforts to reach the food, constantly climbing up and down the 

 legs, but only a few attempted to cross the oiled bandages and these 

 were not successful. The following morning the table w^as well covered 

 with ants. They had gone up the wall over the first trail and passed 

 on up to the ceiling, then over that diagonally until they were over the 

 table, when they dropped down onto it. Very few ants were 

 noticed returning from the ceiling, but a constant stream of them was 

 going u]i. At the point where the table had formerly touched the Avail 

 quite a number of ants were clustered, evidently at a loss to know 

 wdiere to go. The ants, in leaving the table, usually went down one 

 of the legs and were crossing the coal-oil bandages with apparently 



