Ant Warfare, 
01)siTvatic>iis of a (irologist. 
The other day I saw a most 
interesting sight. It was a raid 
by an army of red ants upon a 
nest of blaclv ants of a smaller 
size. I noticed a swarm of more 
than two hundred ants of a kind 
that are about five-sixteenths of 
an inch long running around this 
way and that, and was sure at 
once that something unusual was 
about to happen. W'hen I first 
saw them they had just arrived at 
the corner of the barn and a lot of 
them that had lost their way were 
swarming up the barn door. On 
looking closer I saw that these 
were only straggK-r,^ and that the 
main body was advancing along 
the ground beside the barn. I 
drew back the weeds until I found 
the head of the column and kept 
abreast of it afterward. 
Three or four of the little war- 
riors were ahead of the others and 
seemed to be scouts; the rest 
formed a body about five inches 
wide and four feet long. On they 
ran as straight as an arrow to- 
ward the edge of the bluff — down 
over it and into a hole a foot or 
two below. Immediately dozens 
of black ants came running out, 
some with loads of eggs and some 
without — all frirrhtened and flee- 
ine for their li\ 
for thev were 
attacked from all sides and rob- 
bed of their precious burdens. 
Now there is a continous stream 
of the red fellows in and out of the 
nest and the outcommg are laden 
with eggs and )-uung. So quick- 
ly has it happened that inside ot 
three minutes more than lialf of 
the army has started back and I 
hasten to the head of the column 
again. Straight dack over the 
same route to the corner of 
the barn and thence on 
up the hill. Up, up, up 'till I be- 
gin to wonder at the distance they 
had come. One of the little lead- 
ers carries an egg in his mouth 
and stilkis able to keep in ad- 
vance of the other two. Over 
stones, sticks and other obstruc- 
otins, pushing and pulling, at last 
they come to the end of their jour- 
ne)-. They are met by the work- 
ers and a few slaves and either 
disappear with their booty or turn 
it over to the workers and begin 
to make their toilet. They clean 
themselves with their legs and 
clean their legs again with their 
mouths as does a cat. ^ 
What a wonderful accomplish- 
_jnent for these little creatures. I 
go back over the path and find it 
in every way the easiest, shortest 
and most convenient that could 
have been chosen; no engineer 
could have done better. 1 calcu- 
late the distance. Each way they 
have travelled over eighty feet of 
hillside and forty feet of level 
ground. In twenty minutes these 
pigm}' warriors had marched two- 
hundred and eighty feet, raided a 
city and brought back the spoils. 
Chas. W. Dawson. 
Insects nt Hiffh Altitudes. 
Dr. E. Sterliiio;. 
Ill your April Natukai.ist 1 soo a 
iioto on "Kutrrrtlii's at high altitudes.'" 
wliich rciiiinds me that in August of 1850 
r 111 111" a bilooii a-coiisioii from the 
IFipiMxh-one at P;iris. under the guid- 
anee of the Brothers Goddard. At the 
lii'iglit nf over 14.000 feet, a number of 
Butterflies ])assed us. ooinw several hun- 
ilred feet, o\-er our heads. A uumlierot 
other in.sects ki pf ii- company almost 
duriiia; the entire trip, which lasti'il 
hours. 'I'liis is about the liieatest eleva- 
tion of Insects yet on recoi'd. Gen. Fre- 
mont, yon know, picl^ed nii a llumlile 
Bee some K^.dOO feet above sea level — 
Cleveland. Ohio. 
Bdok Reviews. 
lioolts reviewed or announced in tliese col- 
umns can nsnally be obtained ;it regular 
rales, through tli(.' lidi 1 oi of t liispiiper. 
The Yon/ lis' Cmiipauion is an entertaining; 
wtekly that should be in every famih'. 
the ] iiilibshcrs are rloin<; nicely in that di- 
reclion as tliey announce over 400,000 
subscribers. We will receive w-VJ sub- 
scriptions for the Companion for $1.75 
anil also send \^)1. IV of the Naturai- 
is i . 
QakiFalist-s 
SUPPLY DEPOT 
GOODS xVND srPl'LlES VOM 
Taxiderinists, Eiitoiiiolosisis, Oolo- 
g'ists and Botanists. 
A ixMiic, Bird Lime, Oops, Chenille, Excelsi- 
or, Flowers, (ilne. Grasses, Fiosljng-, Icicles, 
Le;i ves, .^Io~s, i\Iica, Plasl cr, Smalts, san(ls, 
Shields, .^tanils. Tags. Tou", Annealed Wire, 
ELf^-- Drills, lihnvers, Tra vs, Set 1 i 1 ig Hoards, 
C:'isi!S, Oork, CynniOe Hotlles. Korceps, Nets, 
1 n sect I' in S.I 'i il le't 'g( ; u ns, M < m n I i nu ;nii I Ur\-- 
iiig Pa)ier, Glass siKide-, Uoolc-, ox-il (ilass 
S liiides for l-'aii els, Kird skills, llird Kgi;siiii(l 
furiosi 1 ies. 
Artificial dJlass Eyes 
1' a blisher of the 
ORNITHOLOGIST & OOLOGIST. 
Frank B. Webster, 405) Wasliingtoii ,<t., 
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS. 
« ill be inserted free for actual subscribers. 
( "PV must be detached from letter and 
written on one side of paper only; not to ex- 
ceed five lines, including address, estimat- 
ing eight w-ords to the line. 
A large collection of Lepidopterous Insects 
from North and South America, Em-ope and 
Asiii, Will e.x-change for species I do not 
have or will give Lepldoptera for good fossils. 
Live pupae and cocoons on hand. 
li. R. Rowley Curryville, I'ikeCo., Mo. 
W.^KTi-D. The IV,Ill.Geol. Sy. and the fiftli 
OhioGeol. Sy. Will exchange upper coal 
measure fossils for same. 
Sid. J. Ilai'e, 24J5 E. i:5th St. Kansas City, Mo 
TO EXCHANGE: Fir.st class singles or 
original sets with data in full for first-class 
original sets with data in lull. Lists ex- 
changed. CUAS. H. CULP, 
Gilroy, California. 
THE EDITOR of The Nattjkalist desires 
to exchrnge for Oologic.al specimens not in 
his coUeetion. Send list and receive hi.s. 
WILL EXCHANCiR mounted birds and 
skins for birds not in my collection. Also 
flrst-class eggs. \V. H. Parkek, Taxiderm- 
ist, Abilene, Kan. 
Jnh Printing 
kinds ot printing at as low a figure as is con- 
<i.^teiit with good sloek and first classwork 
nmnsluii. Trv lis. 
should send s1nTii|i 
NA I rUALIS I. 
lor 
desiring n. am. 
Rii-d'sEggs Cheiiii 
:i t:ilogiie, to ICrlitor 
To 
We have in stock a sujiplv of the following 
enumerated F'ossiL Fisii 'from the Gkeen 
river shales; Du'Lomistiis analis. D. HUiM. 
u.ius, D. ALTiis, D. Pusirrus, on slabs from 
4 to 6 inolies in length. For terms, address 
NATUKAt.ISTS' EXCHANIl K. box 6, KANSAS 
I Tr v, Jlo. 
RESURRECTION FERN. 
No collect or ot ciii iosit ies can afford to be 
wilhontoneor two Resurrection Ferns. Sin- 
gle specimens 15 c1 s. Two specimens 2.5 cts. 
Lar.ge sheets 5Ucls., 7.5 els. and $l.iili, post, 
paid. c. E. PLEAS, 
I iuiou, \ nil Bnrcii <.'o., .Vrk. 
.Jas]terized Wood. 
Fine specimens of .las]jerized ^\'ood 
from Arizona, are now on sale in this 
city, in large or small quantities, in any 
color or combination of colors. Also 
pieces showin^;' Amethj'St Crystals or 
Polished. For )jartictil:irs address: 
Davhi H. 'J'odd. 
Kansas < "ity, ]\lo. 
/7A'/1 I7'Q ^'ew Kev lo North American 
IgUQa iS) Birds, iicvised Edition, a full 
account ot every known species, 8(111 ]iages, 
.'ilil iUust r;itioiis. llonudiii cloili or ilexible 
leiither, $'..50. Address Ed itoi- N A T I R ALIST, 
Fine Specimens of Polished 
Moss Jasper and 
Jasperized Wood, 
Smoky Quartz Cr\'stals in 
Feldspar and Hemtite. 
Prices Reasonable. Address,— 
D. li. Todd. 1217 ("hei i y St.. 
Kansas VAtv. Mo. 
