CHAP. XV.] IMAGINATION AND VOLITION. 241 



remarkable, but certainly not common to such creatures 

 generally. This is shown by facts communicated to Kirby* 

 by Colonel Sykes, from his own observation, concerning 

 certain " large black ants " common in India. 



" When resident at Poona," he says : " the dessert, consisting 

 of fruits, cakes, and various preserves, always remained upon a 

 small side table, in a verandah of the dining-room. To guard 

 against inroads, the legs of the table were immersed in four basins 

 filled with water ; it was removed an inch from the wall, and, to 

 keep off dust from open windows, was covered with a tablecloth. 

 At first the ants did not attempt to cross the water, but as the 

 strait was very narrow, from an inch to an inch and a half, and 

 the sweets very tempting, they appear, at length, to have braved 

 all risks, to have committed themselves to the deep, to have 

 scrambled across the channel, and to have reached the objects 

 of their desires, for hundreds were found every morning revelling 

 in enjoyment: daily vengeance was executed upon them with- 

 out lessening their numbers ; at last the legs of the table were 

 painted, just above the water, with a circle of turpentine. This at 

 first seemed to prove an effectual barrier, and for some days the 

 sweets were unmolested, after which they were again attacked by 

 these resolute plunderers ; but how they got at them seemed totally 

 unaccountable, till Colonel Sykes, who often passed the table, was 

 surprised to see an ant drop from the wall, about a foot above the 

 table, upon the cloth that covered it ; another and another suc- 

 ceeded. So that though the turpentine and the distance from the 

 wall appeared effectual barriers, still the resources of the animal, 

 when determined to carry its point, were not exhausted, and by 

 ascending the wall to a certain height, with a slight effort against 

 it, in falling it managed to land in safety upon the table." 



These seem to have been acts prompted by 'reason,' but 

 they were probably guided by a far better sense of Sight 

 than is possessed by our English ants, which, as Sir John 

 Lubbock has shown, rely very little upon this sense for 

 guidance. It is only fair to point out, therefore, that the 

 seeming lack of intelligence betrayed by our English ants, 



* " Habits and Instincts," vol. ii. p. 251. 



B 



