210 



ANTS. 



jecturecl that the word is a corruption for Papazi, 

 a carrapato, or tick. So Dr Krapf writes in the 

 German way ' Sansibar ' for Zanzibar. 



The ants in Zanzibar, as in the Brazil, require 

 especial study, and almost every kind of tree ap- 

 pears to have its peculiar tenantry. Upon the clove 

 there is a huge black pismire whose nip burns like 

 fire ; as it has a peculiarly evil savour, tainting 

 even the unaromatic 'bush,' it is mashed and 

 stuffed up the nostrils as a cure for snake-bites. 

 The Copal is colonized by a semi-transparent gin- 

 ger-coloured formica, whose every bite draws 

 blood, and the mango-leaf is doubled up by a 

 smaller variety into the semblance of a bird's nest. 

 The horrible odour in parts of the bush, which 

 young African travellers attribute to malaria and 

 which often leads them to suspect the presence of 

 carrion, generally proceeds from ants : I remarked 

 this especially when visiting Abeokuta and other 

 places in West Africa. Throughout the interior 

 6 drivers,' as they are sensibly termed on the 

 Guinea Coast, visit the huts in armies, and soon 

 clear them of all offal. A small black ant attacks 

 meat, and the best way to procure a clean skele- 

 ton is to expose the body near its haunt ; beware, 

 however, of cats and dogs. As in Africa gener- 

 ally, the termite is a plague ; this small animal 



