ANTS AND THEIR SLAVES. I 73 



appear. There was no sign of ant-hills in the turf ; but 

 after a while we detected an almost imperceptible orifice, 

 through which we saw them vanish in less time than it 

 takes me to write these words. We asked ourselves if it 

 was an entrance to their domicile ; if they had re-entered 

 their city. In a minute at the utmost they gave us a re- 

 ply, and showed us our mistake. They issued in a 

 throng, each carrying a nymph on its mandibles. 



"From the short time they had taken, it was evident 

 that they had a previous knowledge of the localities, the 

 place where the eggs were deposited, the time when they 

 were to assemble, and the degree of resistance they had to 

 expect. Perhaps it was not their first journey. 



" The little blacks on whom the red ants made this raz-- 

 zia sallied out in considerable numbers ; and I truly pitied 

 them. They did not attempt to fight. They seemed 

 frightened and stunned. They only endeavored to delay 

 the ravishers by clinging to them. A red ant was thus ar- 

 rested ; but another red one, who was free, relieved him of 

 his burden, and thereupon the black ant relaxed his grasp. 

 In fine, it was a pitiful scene for the blacks. They offered 

 no serious resistance. The five hundred red ants succeeded 

 in carr3'ing off nearlj^ three hundred children. At two or 

 three feet from the hole, the blacks ceased to pursue them, 

 abandoned all hope, and resigned themselves to their fate. 

 All this did not occupy ten minutes between the departure 

 and the return. The two parties were very unequal. It 

 was evidently a facile abuse of strength — very probably an 

 outrage often repeated — a tyranny of the great, who levied 

 a tribute of children from their poor little neighbors." 



