AND THE CHILDREN. 
23 
upon the floor. Do you see those little six-legged crea¬ 
tures crossing the floor? Now they enter the crack. 
Of course, you know their name? But I ain about to 
tell you about a kind of ant that lives in trees. We’ll 
go out to the wood-pile and perhaps we can find one of 
the nests of the species called Formica Pennsylvanica ,. 
Formica means ant, hence this is the Pennsylvanian ant. 
Oh ! all the nests are abandoned. None, filled with 
insects, is left for us. We must needs go to the woods 
in order to watch these little fellows work and learn 
something of their society. So let us be off. 
Here we are at the base of a large Oak-tree. By 
some accident the tree has become hollow, not so much 
that only a thin shell remains but enough so that ants 
can enter and make, their home. Possibly the ants bored 
this themselves, for, as we shall see, their mandibles are 
more formidable compared with the size of the insect 
than those of any other insect. 
Strike a sharp blow upon the trunk of the tree.— 
There.—See them come out. Now here is a chance to 
learn a great deal by observation and thinking a little at 
the same time. 
Notice. How some of the ants are busy, carrying 
bits of straw, minute chips, and other things! Notice, 
also the size of these insects that are carrying things. 
