The Shasta Courier

SHASTA COURIER.

African Ants.

In a recent lecture in New York, M. Du Chaillu described a species of African ants, some of which are so terrible to man, and even to the beasts of the woods, from their venomous bite, their fierce temper and voracity, that their path is freely abandoned to them. The most remarkable and most dreaded of all is the black Bashikouay. There are two other varieties of Bashikouay besides the black kind. These black Bashikouays may be well called the lords of the forest. It is the most voracious creature I ever met. It is the dread of all living animals, from the leopard to the smallest insects. It is their habit to march through the forests in a long, regular line, a line about two inches broad, and often several miles in length; all along this rank are larger ants who act as officers—stand outside the ranks and keep this singular army in order. If they come to a place where there are no trees to shelter them from the sun, whose heat they cannot bear, they immediately build an underground tunnel through which the whole army pass in columns to the forest beyond. When they grow hungry, as by a sudden command, the long line spreads itself through the forest, advancing forward, attacking and devouring all living things with a fury that is quite irresistible. The elephant and the gorilla fly before them; the black men run away; every animal that lives in their line of march is chased. In an incredible short space of time those that are caught are overwhelmed, killed, eaten, and only the bare skeleton remains. They seem to travel day and night. Many a time have I been awakened out of a sleep and obliged to rush into the water to save myself from them. When they enter a house they clear it of everything. Cockroaches are devoured in an instant: rats and mice spring around the room in vain. They will not touch vegetable matter; thus they are very useful, clearing the country of many insects. When on the march, the insect world flies before them, and I have often had the approach of a Bashikouay army heralded to me by this means. Wherever they go they make a clean sweep, even ascending to the tops of the trees in pursuit of their prey. Their manner of attack is an impetuous leap, instantly the strong pincers are fastened, and they only let go when the piece gives way. At such a time this little insect seems animated by a kind of fury, which causes it to disregard entirely its own safety. The negroes relate that criminals, by which they generally mean wizards, have sometimes been exposed on the path of the Bashikouay ants, tied to a tree so they might not escape, and been devoured to the bones. They are larger than any ants we have in America. The number of one of their armies is so great that one does not like to enter into calculations, but I have seen a continuous line passing at a good speed a particular place for twelve hours. So you can imagine how many millions there may have been.