THE RAINS 91 



there was now a very rough and almost precipitous 

 descent. But, steep and rough as the descent was, 

 nevertheless many hundreds of the ants were racing 

 up and down it with apparently the greatest facility. 



At the bottom of the descent was a small heap of 

 what seemed very diminutive shrivelled raisins. These 

 the ants were bringing up and conveying away into the 

 nest. I remained for some time and watched them. 

 The sight was very interesting. Each ant as he issued 

 from the nest ran down the descent with quite headlong 

 speed. Arrived at the bottom, he made a rush to the 

 heap, seized with his jaws one of the little raisin-Hke 

 bodies, and then tore up the broken bank quite as fast 

 as he had come down it, and, it seemed to me, with not 

 the least more effort. 



Agile as the ants were, still occasionally they got 

 a tumble. Some particle of loose earth slipped, and 

 then away they went rolling over and over to the 

 terrace below. These tumbles, however, seemed not in 

 the least to discompose them. Without the delay of 

 a moment, they recommenced the ascent just as rapidly 

 as before, and so far as I could observe they never 

 in the course of their tumble once lost hold of their 

 burdens. 



After watching the ants for some little while, I 

 became curious to ascertain what these little raisin-like 

 things they were carrying up in reality were. For 

 this purpose I descended to the lower terrace to more 

 nearly inspect them. I found they were the pupae, or 

 undeveloped young ants, still enclosed each in its 

 chrysalis. The ants must have carried these pupse out 



