THE ENTOMOLOGIST’S WEEKLY INTELLIGENCER. 
63 
9. Farren, W. 
10. Wilkinson, G. H. 
11. D’Omlle, H. 
12. John, E. 
13. Backhouse, W. 
14. Balding, A. 
15. Wilkinson, T. 
AGRICULTUEAL ANTS. 
Not long ago Mr. Saunders read at the 
Entomological Society a notice of an ant 
which had a turn for Mineralogy and 
made collections of crystals. At the 
meeting of the Linnean Society, on the 
18th of April, a notice was communicated 
of an agricultural ant, which is reported 
as follows in the ‘ Gardeners’ Chronicle’ 
of Saturday last: — 
“ Exlraels from Letters addressed hy 
Gideon Lincecum, Esq., to Charles 
Darwin, Esq., on the hahit of the 
Agricultural Ant of Texas. 
“ The first letter was dated Long Point, 
Texas, December 29, I860. The species 
of Formica, which Mr. Lincecum named 
‘ agricultural,’ was stated to be a large 
brownish red ant, dwelling in paved cities, 
a farmer, thrifty and healthy, and dili- 
gent and thoughtful, making suitable 
and timely arrangements for the changing 
seasons. When he selects a situation 
upon which to locate a city, if on ordi- 
narily dry land he bores a hole, and sur- 
rounds it with a low circular mound 
three or sometimes six inches high, its 
outer limits three to four feet from the 
entrance. But if the location is on low 
flat land liable to inundation, though the 
ground may be perfectly dry when he 
does the work, he elevates his mound in 
a sharp cone to the height of fifteen or 
twenty inches, sometimes even more, 
and places the entrance near the apex. 
Around this he clears the ground of all 
obstacles, and levels and smooths the 
surface to the distance of three or four 
feet from the gate of the city. On this 
space not a spire of any green thing is 
permitted to grow, except a single species 
of grain-bearing grass, which, having 
planted, he nurses and cultivates with 
constant care, cutting away all other 
grasses and weeds that may spring up. 
The cultivated grass grows luxuriantly, 
producing a heavy crop of small white 
flinty seeds, which under the microscope 
very much resembles the rice of com- 
merce. When it gets ripe it is carefully 
harvested and carried by the workers, 
chaff and all, into the granary cells, 
where it is divested of the chaff and 
packed away, the chaff being taken out 
and thrown beyond the limits of the 
cleared space. In wet weather these 
stores are liable to become damp, and to 
sprout and spoil; and if this occurs they 
bring them out to dry on the first fair 
day, carrying back all the sound seeds, 
and leaving the sprouted ones to waste. 
Mr. Lincecum stated that in the sand 
beds overlying portions of rock in his 
peach orchard there were five cities of 
these agricultural ants — evidently quite 
ancient cities — which he had observed for 
twelve years. The cities were invariably 
planted at the proper season with ant 
rice, and it was accordingly seen spring- 
ing up in the farm circle every year 
about the 1st of November. He main- 
tained that there can he no douht of the 
fact that the peculiar grain-hearing grass 
was intentionally planted. 
“ In a subsequent letter, dated March 4, 
1861, replying to this question from Mr. 
Darwin : ‘ Do you suppose the ants plant 
seeds for the ensuing crop?’ Mr. Lince- 
cum replies: — ‘I have not the slightest 
doubt of it. I have at all seasons 
watched the same ant cities during the 
last twelve years. I visited the same 
cities yesterday, and found the crop of 
ant rice growing finely, exhibiting the 
signs of high cultivation.’ ‘ We have,’ he 
