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probably they were carried on till the root of some tree presented itself, up which they ascended and so up the trunk and branches by the coverd way before mentiond. These I should suppose to be the houses to which they retire in the winter season as they are undoubtedly ble to defend them from any rain that can fall, while the others, tho generaly built under the shelter of some overhanging branch, must be but ill proof to a heavy rain from the thinness of their covering. Thus much for the ants, an industrious race who in all countries have for that reason been admird by man, tho probably in no countrey more admirable than in this. The few observationsI have wrote down of them are cheifly from conjecture and therefore are not at all to be depended upon; was any man however to be setled here who had time and inclination to observe their oeconomy I am convincd it would far exceed that of any insects we know, not excepting out much admird bees.
The sea however made some amends for the Barreness of the Land. Fish tho not so plentyfull as they generaly are in higher latitudes were far from scarce;
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Voyaging Accounts |  |
© Derived from State Library of NSW Transcription of Banks's Journal page (vol. 2) *272, February 2004
Published by kind permission of the Library
To cite this page use: https://paulturnbull.org/project/southseas/journals/-banks_remarks-276.html