CHAPTER VIII 



NATURE NEAR CAMP 



HE exigencies of camp life required the 



thinning out of tlie small acacias and 



other bushes in the unmediate ueio'hbour- 



hood of the tents, and this bare patch of 



ground, far from being barren of interest, provided 



to 



entertainment for hours at a time. The clearing of the 

 ground at once attracted the leaf-cutting ants, which 

 swarmed to the open place in myriads. We were thor- 

 oughly alarmed at first, visions of being compelled to 

 move our outfit out to the water-encircled sand-bars 

 being far from pleasing. But as it j^i'oved, the ants 

 gave us not a moment of discomfort, for, by a little 

 judicious placing of orange-peels and biscuit-crumbs 

 in a sharply defined space, we were able to convey the 

 idea to these hordes of insects that the daily falling of 

 " manna " was restricted to that particular spot. 



These ants were most interesting little creatures. 

 The entrances to their homes were many yards away, 

 and yet all day long, two unbroken lines of ants con- 

 nected these holes with the new food supply; one line 

 hurrying empty-jawed to the scene of activity, while 

 those in the other file were returning heavily laden 



«4 152 ■Jw 



