6 3 8 
* Recent Studies in 
[November, 
adduced : — Three glasses were conne< 5 ted with a nest of 
Formica niger by means of three tapes, equal in length and 
width, and placed parallel with each other, so that the 
means of access from the nest to each glass were exactly 
equal. In one of the glasses were placed from 300 to 600 
larvae, in the second two or three only, and in the third none 
at all. The objedt of the last was to see whether any ants 
would arrive at the glasses by mere accident. The experi- 
mentalist then put a mature ant into each glass. Each of 
them took a larva and carried it to the nest, returning for 
another, and so on. After each journey another larva was 
put in the glass containing only few larvse. Sir J. Lubbock 
reasoned that if ants came to the glasses as a matter of ac- 
cident, or accompanied one another by chance, or if they 
merely saw larvae being brought and concluded that more 
might be found in the same place, or if the ants were merely 
guided by the scented track of their forerunners, the number 
of the ants going to each of the two glasses ought to be 
approximately equal. But this was not the case. To the 
glass containing many larvae there came, in 47 J hours, 
257 ants ; to that with only two or three larvae there came, 
in a time longer by 5J hours, only 82 ants ; and to the glass 
containing no larvae there came not one. Hence it is con- 
cluded that ants cannot merely tell their companions that 
there is work to be done, but can give some idea of its quan- 
tity, and of the number of hands required for its performance. 
The precautions taken by Sir J. Lubbock will, on careful 
consideration, be found to exclude every other interpretation 
of the fadts. 
Mr. Romanes also gives certain fadts proving that ants 
can take note of difficulties and dangers, and devise methods 
how such may be avoided or overcome. They have, indeed, 
the power of invention. The following incident is quoted 
from the well-known work of Belt : — “ A nest was made 
near one of our tramways, and to get to the trees the ants 
had to cross the rails over which the waggons were conti- 
nually passing and repassing. Every time they came along 
a number of ants were crushed to death. They persevered 
in crossing for some time, but at last set to work and tun- 
nelled underneath each rail. One day, when the waggons 
were not running, I stopped up the tunnels with stones ; but 
although great numbers carrying leaves were thus cut off 
from the nest, they would not cross the rails, but set to work 
making fresh tunnels underneath them.” 
Prof. Leuckart, it is stated, “ placed round the trunk of a 
tree which was visited by ants, as pasture for Aphides, a 
