4 ARTIFICIAL NEST 
was that if the ants fell, as often happened, they were 
within the water boundary, and were able to return 
home. This plan answered fairly well, and saved space, 
but it did not quite fulfil my hopes, as the ants were 
so pugnacious, that I was obliged to be very careful 
which nests were placed on the same stand. 
Of course it was impossible to force the ants into 
these glass nests. On the other hand, when once the 
right way is known it is easy to induce them to go in. 
When I wished to start a new nest I dug one up, and 
brought home the ants, earth, &e., all together. I 
then put them over one of my artificial nests, on one 
of the platforms surrounded by a moat of water. Gra- 
dually the outer earth dried up, while that between 
the two plates of glass, being protected from evapo- 
ration, retained its moisture. Under these circum- 
stances the ants found it more suitable to their 
requirements, and gradually deserted the drier mould 
outside, which I removed by degrees. In the earth 
between the plates of glass the ants tunnelled out 
passages, chambers, &c. (fig. 2), varying in form ac- 
cording to the circumstances and species. 
Even between the plates of glass the earth gradu- 
ally dried up, and I had to supply artificial rain from 
time to time. Occasionally also I gave them an alto- 
gether new nest. They seem, however, to get attached to 
their old homes, and I have one community which 
has inhabited the same glass case ever since 1874. 
It is hardly necessary to say that the individual 
