116 CONVERSATIONS ON 



"Are they strong, Uncle Philip? 



" So strong, boys, that five men may stand 

 on them ; and it is a common thing for the 

 wild bulls to get upon them and look out, 

 while the rest of the herd are feeding below." 



" Why, how high are they ?" 



" Oh, of different heights ; some as many 

 as five or six feet, others are twelve, and the 

 largest are as high as twenty feet, and would 

 easily hold a dozen men." 



" And how large are the ants, Uncle Philip?" 



" Not above a quarter of an inch high as 

 they stand. Now, boys, just compare the 

 size of one of these nests with the size of the 

 ant that made it ; and it is quite as large in pro- 

 portion as the city of New York is when com- 

 pared to a man's size ; yes, it is a great deal 

 larger in proportion. These nests are some- 

 times five hundred times as high as the ants 

 which build them : now suppose that men 

 built their houses five hundred times as high 

 as themselves, and as large at the foundation 

 in proportion to their height, what monstrous 

 buildings they would be ! But let me go on. 

 This outside shell, which I have been telling 

 you how they make, is nothing but the wall 

 of the city ; the buildings are all inside of 

 that." 



