256 ANTS AND CHILDREN OF THE GARDEN 



yellow juice comes out of their joints. This is bad smell- 

 ing. 



KENNETH. They say there is a ladybug coming this 

 way from Mexico, that is an awful pest. 



ALBERT. I read of a state that shipped in several 

 millions of ladybugs to help destroy harmful insects. 



FLORENCE. I like to see her fly from the palm of my 

 hand when I say, 



"Ladybug, Ladybug, fly away home ; 

 Your house is on fire 'and your children will burn." 



DOROTHY. A girl from the ranch says she finds the 

 cows this way: She holds a Daddy Longlegs up and says, 

 "Daddy Longlegs, tell me where the cows are." Then he 

 points the right way. 



FLORENCE. They say that the crickets that live with 

 some ants are about the size of a grain of wheat, that they 

 play around the door like dogs, and that the ants carry 

 them along when they move. 



ALBERT. I saw a spider build a wagon-wheel trap, or 

 snare, last night. It took her four hours. It would take 

 a book to tell what I've seen spiders do. They are won- 

 derful animals. 



KENNETH. A spider the size of a housefly caught one 

 of our ants, and I put them both in a small bottle, and 

 laid it by the door. Another ant walked into the bottle, 

 tackled the spider, took the ant away from it, and carried 

 the body three feet to one side. 



ALBERT. Yes. And then the other ant killed the 

 spider, carried it away three feet, stopped to think, and 

 the turned round and took it into the house. 



KENNETH. Look at the little oak galls on this bush. 

 Some of them look like rosy-cheeked apples. One hundred 

 and fifty kinds of galls have been found on the oak. 



