pupae in their jaws, only to be immediately despoiled of them by
the Ecitons, which are running about in every direction with great
swiftness. Whenever they come across a Hypoclinea carrying a larva
or pupa, they capture the burden so quickly, that I could never
ascertain exactly how it was done.

As soon as an Eciton gets hold of its prey, it rushes off back
along the advancing column, which is composed of two sets, one
hurrying forward, the other returning laden with their booty, but
all and always in the greatest haste and apparent hurry. About the
nest which they are harrying everything is confusion, Ecitons run
here and there and everywhere in the greatest haste and disorder;
but the result of all this apparent confusion is that scarcely a
single Hypoclinea gets away with a pupa or larva. I never saw the
Ecitons injure the Hypoclineas themselves, they were always
contented with despoiling them of their young. The ant that is
attacked is a very cowardly species, and never shows fight. I often
found it running about sipping at the glands of leaves, or milking
aphides, leaf-hoppers, or scale-insects that it found unattended by
other ants. On the approach of another, though of a much smaller
species, it would immediately run away. Probably this cowardly and
un-antly deposition has caused it to become the prey of the Eciton.
At any rate, I never saw the Ecitons attack the nest of other
species.

The moving columns of Ecitons are composed almost entirely of
workers of different sizes, but at intervals of two or three yards
there are larger and lighter-coloured individuals that will often
stop, and sometimes run a little backward, halting and touching
some of the ants with their antennae. They look like officers