Augui GOU^ have thought them able to conquer by any combina-
i— v—1/ tion o f their ftrength. But though we gratified our curio-
fity at their expence, the injury did not go unrevenged ; for
thoufands immediately threw themfelves upon us, and gave
us intolerable pain with their flings, efpecially thofe which
took pofleflion of our necks and our hair, from whence they
were not eafily driven: the fling was fcarcely lefs painful
than that o f a bee; but, except it was repeated, the pain did
not laft more than a minute.
Another fort are quite black, and their operations and
manner of life are not lefs extraordinary. - Their habitations
are the infide of the branches of a tree, which they contrive
to excavate by working out the pith almoft to the extremity
of the flendereft twig; the tree at the fame time flourifliing,
as if it had no fuch inmate. When we firft found the tree',
we gathered fome*of thd branches, and were fcarcely lefs
aftonifhed than we fihould have been to find that we had
prophaned a confecrated grove, where every tree, upon being
wounded, gave figns of life ; for we were inftantly covered
with legions of thefe animals, fwarming from every broken
hough, and inflicting their flings with inceflant violence.
They are mentioned by Rumphius in his Herbarium Amboi-
netife, vol. ii. p. 257.; but the tree in which he faw their
dwelling, is very different from that in which we found
them.
A third kind we found netted in the root o f a plant, which
grows on the bark of trees in the manner of mifletoe, and
which they had perforated for that ufe. This root is commonly
as big as a large turnip, and fometimes much bigger
: when we cut ir, we found it interfered by innumerable
winding paffages, all filled with thefe animals, by
which however the vegetation o f the plant did not appear to
have
have fuffered any injury. We never cut one of thefe roots wr®-
that was not inhabited, though fome were not bigger than ■
a hazle-nut. The animals themfelves are very Email, not
more than half as big as the common red ant in England.
They had flings, but fcarcely force enough to make them
felt; they had however a power of tormenting us in an
equal, if not a greater degree; for the moment we handled
the root, they fwarmed from innumerable holes, and running
about thofe parts of the body that were uncovered, produced
a titillation more intolerable than pain, except it is increafed
to great violence. Rumphius has alfo given an account
of this bulb and its inhabitants, vol. vi. p. 120. where he
mentions another fort that are black.
We found a fourth kind, which are perfectly harmlefs,
and almoft exaClly refemble the white-ants of the Eaft Indies
; the architecture of thefe is ftill more curious than that
of the others. They have houfes of two. forts, one is fuImpended
on the branches of trees, and the other ereCted upon
the ground: thofe upon the trees are about three or four
times as big as a man’s head, and are built of a brittle fub-
ftance, which feems to confift of Email parts of vegetables
kneaded together with a glutinous matter, which their bodies
probably fupply; upon breaking this cruft, innumerable
cells, fwarming with inhabitants, appear in a great variety
of winding directions, all communicating with each other,
and with ieveral apertures that lead to other nefls upon the
fame tree ; they have alfo one large avenue, or covered way,
leading to the ground, and carried on under it to the other
neft or houfe that is conftruCted there. This houfe is generally
at the root of a tree, but not of that upon which their
other dwellings are conftrufted: it is formed like an irregularly
ficled cone, and fometimes is more than fix, feet
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