102 EXPEBIMENTS WITH BUEIED ANTS. 



habit, or really due to a desire to extricate their 

 friends. 



With this view I tried the following experiments : 



(1) On August 20 I placed some honey near a nest 

 of Lasius niger on a glass surrounded with water, and 

 so arranged that in reaching it the ants passed over 

 another glass covered with a layer of sifted earth, about 

 one-third of an inch in thickness. I then put some 

 ants to the honey, and by degrees a considerable num- 

 ber collected round it. Then at 1.30 P.M. I buried an 

 ant from the same nest under the earth, and left her 

 there till 5 P.M., when I uncovered her. She was only 

 just covered by the earth, and was none the worse, but 

 during the whole time not one of her friends had 

 taken the least notice of her. 



(2) I arranged (September 1) some honey again in 

 the same way. At 5 P.M. about fifty ants were at the 

 honey, and a considerable number passing to and fro. 

 I then buried an ant as before, taking of course one 

 from the same nest. At 7 P.M. the number of ants at 

 the honey had nearly doubled. At 10 P.M. they were 

 still more numerous, and had carried off about two- 

 thirds of the honey. At 7 A.M. the next morning the 

 honey was all gone, two or three were still wandering 

 about, but no notice had been taken of the prisoner, 

 whom I then let out. In this case I allowed the honey 

 to be finished, because I thought it might perhaps be 

 alleged that the excitement produced by such a treasure 

 distracted their attention, or even (on the principle of 

 doing the greatest good to the greatest number) that 



