62 BIRDS IN TOWN AND VILLAGE 



was of the ants, and where to find a sufficiency of 

 them to stay the cravings of hunger; for, after 

 the first sensations of disgust had been overcome, 

 he had begun to grow fond of this kind of food, 

 and now consumed it with avidity. And as his 

 strength increased so did his dexterity in catching 

 the small, active insect prey. He no longer gath- 

 ered the ants up in his palm and swallowed them 

 along with dust and grit, but picked them^ up 

 deftly, and conveyed them one by one to his 

 mouth with lightning rapidity. Meanwhile that 

 "acid principle," about which he had heard such 

 wonderful things, was having its effect on his 

 system. His skin changed its colour; he grew 

 shrunken and small, until at length, after very 

 many years, he dwindled to the grey little mani- 

 kin of the present time. His mind, too, changed; 

 he has no thought nor remembrance of his 

 former life and condition and of his long-dead 

 relations; but he still haunts the village where he 

 knows so well where to find the small ants, to 

 pick them from off the ant-hill and from the 

 trunks of trees with his quick little claw-like 

 hands. Language and song are likewise forgotten 

 with all human things, all except his laugh; for 



