514 THE AGRICULTURAL ANT. 
years after my first acquaintance with the above named city. It 
was interesting to observe how soon they availed themselves of 
the use of: the clean hard-trodden road. They were seen running 
along in trains half a mile from their city, and it was not long 
before new cities were seen along the side of the road. The first 
- one made its appearance about eighty yards from the old city and 
just far enough from the road to be out of the way of the passing 
teams. ‘ 
These new cities, which, in the course of three years, made theit 
appearance at intervals of about eighty yards along the side of the 
road for more than a mile, were never seen before; they were a 
year and a half old. One of their peculiarities is, that with bits 
of stick, little balls of soil and the like, they conceal the entrance 
of a new city until they consider themselves sufficiently strong to 
make their appearance and sustain themselves among the nests of 
other ants. They are then seen clearing out and paving & consid- 
erable circular space around the entrance to their city. Some old 
settlements have a pavement fifteen feet in diameter and a mound , 
in the centre a foot high. 
And now the increasing cattle made the grass thinner, and the 
ants swarming out spread their cities in all directions at short 
intervals (thirty yards is about the average) until the prairies af 
full of them. aes 
They do not, like the bees, throw off colonies, to g0 out and 
build up a new kingdom. It is a very different process Ons 
certain day in summer all the males and females—they ee 
assemble, as if by appointment, from all the surrounding ne") 5 
some suitable place; generally in the smooth road, where "a 
seize each other, three or four males to one female and wa : 
on the ground eagerly, give the idea of a battle ; which 
less observer is sure to report as such. It is, howevely 
but a rampant amative furor, which continues thre 
when the female becoming satisfied with her numerous, Cag" 
makes shift to tear herself loose from them and make her : 
At first she climbs up some little weed or spear of grass," 
to rest for a few minutes, when she spreads her glassy hiss? 
the last time, and flies with the wind until she is = 
some counter current casts her to the ground. She soem be 
* great haste, and running around, she soon selects ere hen 
she energetically goes to work digging a small hole, ¥ 
