52 
ANTS 
On Cctober 23, Mr. Briant lectured on ‘Ants and _ their 
Ways.’ After giving us an account of various ants, British and 
foreign, and their habits, he showed several living ants in front 
of the lantern so that their shadows fell on the screen. In this 
way were shown specimens of Formica rufa (the hill-ant), 
F. flava (the meadow-ant), J. niger (the garden-ant), J. sanguinea 
(the slavemaking-ant), F. fusca (the slave ant). 
F. sanguinea is such a lazy animal, that when once it has 
exerted itself sufficiently to catch some slaves, it lives all the 
rest of its life in helpless dependence on them. If the slaves 
die, the slave-owners, having forgotten how to feed themselves, 
die shortly afterwards. 
F. flava is the common brown ant one so commonly sees in 
walks across the country. A nest of this ant was purchased by 
the Society, and is now on view in the Museum. 
Between two panes of glass earth has been placed, and the 
ants have made their nest there. There are chambers and 
passages connecting them to be seen. The nursery where the 
young are tended and fed by their nurses, the queen looked 
after by her attendants, the cemetery where the dead ants are 
buried, all these can be clearly seen. Driven about by ants 
are several small white animals which act the part of cows, for 
they are ‘milked’ and the milk given to the young ants. 
The inhabitants want a little moisture occasionally, but no 
food during the winter months. During the summer months 
they are fed with a small quantity of honey once a week. 
That such nests are not hard to start was shown by 
C. V. Thornton, who made a copy of the one got from 
Mr. Briant, and got some ants from near the College bath. 
When he put these in the prepared place they soon started 
arranging the nest, although he had no queen inside, 
