The Negroes Avoid This By Their Knowledge Of The Habits Of The
Black Ant, Who Is A Sworn Enemy To The White.
They accordingly pour a little treacle on the ground within a
yard of the hole occupied by the white ants.
The smell of the
treacle shortly attracts some of the black species, who, on their
arrival are not long in observing their old enemies passing in
and out of the hole. Some of them leave the treacle; these are
evidently messengers, as in the course of the day a whole army of
black ants will be seen advancing, in a narrow line of many yards
in length, to storm the stronghold of the white ants. They enter
the hole, and they destroy every white ant in the building.
Resistance there can be none, as the plethoric, slow-going white
ant is as a mouse to a cat in the encounter with his active
enemy, added to which the black ant is furnished with a most
venomous sting, in addition to a powerful pair of mandibles. I
have seen the black ants returning from their work of
destruction, each carrying a slaughtered white ant in his mouth,
which he devours at leisure. This is again a decided effort of
reason, as the black ant arrives at the treacle without a thought
of the white ant in his mind, but, upon seeing his antagonist, he
despatches messengers for reinforcements, who eventually bring up
the army to the "rendezvous."
Numerous instances might be cited of the presence of reasoning
powers among the insect classes, but this faculty becomes of
increased interest when seen in the larger animals.
Education is both a proof and a promoter of reason in all
animals. This removes them from their natural or instinctive
position, and brings forth the full development of the mental
powers. This is exhibited in the performance of well-trained
dogs, especially among pointers and setters. Again, in the feats
performed by educated animals in the circus, where the elephant
has lately endeavored to prove a want of common sense by standing
on his head. Nevertheless, however absurd the trick, which man
may teach the animal to perform, the very fact of their
performance substantiates an amount of reason in the animal.
Monkeys, elephants and dogs are naturally endowed with a larger
share of the reasoning power than other animals, which is
frequently increased to a wonderful extent by education. The
former, even in their wild state, are so little inferior to some
natives, either in their habits or appearance, that I should feel
some reluctance in denying them an almost equal share of reason;
the want Of speech certainly places them below the Veddahs, but
the monkeys, on the other hand, might assert a superiority by a
show of tails.
Monkeys vary in intelligence according to their species, and may
be taught to do almost anything. There are several varieties in
Ceylon, among which the great black wanderoo, with white
whiskers, is the nearest in appearance to the human race.
Enter page number
PreviousNext
Page 103 of 173
Words from 52892 to 53399
of 89475
