( 234 ) 



Wood- Ants, or Wood-lice, as they - 

 are called by the Englijh, and Ponx de 

 Bois by the French, are a fmall Ant, 

 about two lines in length, and of a whi- 

 tifh brown colour, and a very deftruc- 

 tive infedt, eating holes in wood, de- 

 ft roying the pods of houfes, devouring 

 cloaths, books, &c. They are eaten, 

 with great avidity, by domeftic fowls, 

 birds, and lizards, tho' when bruifed 

 they afford a very ftrong, volatile, dis- 

 agreeable fmell. They form a kind of 

 arched roads, about half an inch wide, 

 concave, and fomewhat flattifh ; thefe 

 are often built on the floors and cielings 

 of houfes, extending many hundred feet 

 in length, with a variety of ferpentine 

 windings. The convex walls of this 

 extenfive habitation are compofed of a 

 whitifh brown incruftated fubftance, 

 which is eafily deftroyed. Within its 

 cavity the Ants live, in a regular, well- 

 ordered fociety ; and when any breach 



is 



