BRAMPTON-AMONG-THE-ROSES.
them fetch up hundreds of what appeared like grains
of rice from out their nest, and bring them to the upper
galleries for the sun to warm and dry. These con-
tained the young ants ready to burst out of the skins
or shells, for the eggs at first are very small, and
Solomon mistook them for grains of corn, when he
spoke of the ants in his day laying up stores of food
for winter, for the habits of insects were not so welt
understood at that remote period as they have been
during the last century. But she was a great plague
to them, and would thrust a round stem of dried grass
into their holes, when they came rushing out of the
ant-hill by scores, and ran up and down and round
about to see what it was that had disturbed them; and
some would mount the tallest blades of grass, and look
out like sailors from the top of a ship-mast, to see if
they could discover the enemy. Then in a minute or
two all would return to the nest, but if the poking
was often repeated, a few would remain outside like
sentinels, to keep watch, and if they raised an alarm
nearly all the garrison would again sally out in the
greatest confusion. Not many young ladies knew so
much of the habits of the industrious ants as Christa-
bel, or observed them so closely as she did.
 Sometimes a slow-paced snail, dragging his great
house on his back, as if an elephant carried his caravan
instead of only resting in it at night, and by mistake
he would go trailing with his heavy load over the
house-top of the poor ants, when they would rush out
and begin to bite him. In vain did he draw in his
horns and cover himself with froth; they stuck to him
until he made off with all the speed he could, for he
soon found out that there was no remaining in peace
and comfort in such a populous neighbourhood.
Generally she picked up the poor snail, and removed