SLAVE-MAKING ANTS. 15 



when, on looking down, I found, to my sur- 

 prise, that I was in the midst of a battle- 

 field. A powerful army of red ants had in- 

 vaded the dominions of the black colony 

 which for three years past I had had a kind 

 of supervision over. I had often brought 

 plants covered with aphides the immortal 

 Linnaeus called these aphides the ants' cows 

 and stuck the plants into the earth around 

 their dwelling, and had given them sugar, 

 and had driven and carried toads from their 

 nest which were devouring them. In short, 

 I had become very much interested in and 

 quite attached to this colony, but I was pow- 

 erless to aid them now. I could only look 

 on in wonder and astonishment. 



A yard or more around the foot of the 

 tree the battle was raging, and no place for 

 the sole of my foot without crushing the 

 combatants. I found in every instance a 

 red ant pitted against a black; sometimes 

 two red ones against one black, in which 

 case the black was soon despatched. For 

 three hours I watched the conflict; all 

 around me the combatants locked in a close 

 embrace, rolling and tumbling about, never 

 separating until one was killed, and often 

 the dead victim had fastened with so firm a 

 hold on his adversary that it was with the 



