158 
WANDERINGS IN 
third 
JOURNEY. 
Ants. 
Three 
species of 
Ant- 
bears. 
Whenever I have seen him in his native woods, 
whether at rest, or asleep, or on his travels, I have 
always observed that he was suspended from the 
branch of a tree. When his form and anatomy are 
attentively considered, it will appear evident that the 
sloth cannot be at ease in any situation, where his 
body is higher, or above his feet. We will now take 
our leave of him. 
In the far-extending wilds of Guiana, the traveller 
will be astonished at the immense quantity of ants 
which he perceives on the ground and in the trees. 
They have nests in the branches, four or five times 
as large as that of the rook; and they have a co¬ 
vered way from them to the ground. In this covered 
way thousands are perpetually passing and repassing; 
and if you destroy part of it, they turn to, and im¬ 
mediately repair it. 
Other species of ants again have no covered way; 
but travel, exposed to view, upon the surface of the 
earth. You will sometimes see a string of these 
ants a mile long, each carrying in its mouth to its 
nest a green leaf, the size of a sixpence. It is won¬ 
derful to observe the order in which they move, and 
with what pains and labour they surmount the ob¬ 
structions of the path. 
The ants have their enemies, as well as the rest of 
animated nature. Amongst the foremost of these 
stand the three species of Ant-bears. The smallest 
is not much larger than a rat; the next is nearly the 
size of a fox; and the third a stout and powerful 
animal, measuring about six feet from the snout to 
