Just eight o'clock! The garden lying fresh and dewy in the golden sunshine was already full of life and motion. Winged things were everywhere, birds and bees and butterflies; but down near the hedge, under the big oak, was the busiest corner in the garden, for this was to be a great wedding day.
          The black servants had early thrown open the palace gateways, and were now toiling to widen the halls and doors, and to build out the embankments in order that the road might be broad and beautiful for the wedding procession. Back and forth along the line of busy servants the masters passed rapidly in uniforms of red and black, now pausing to inspect the work, now to say a word of encouragement or reproof, and now to lend a hand.
          Inside the palace all was excitement and commotion. The hundreds of brides and grooms were dressed and quite ready. The brides wore waists of brilliant red, skirts of black, and wee red shoes, and for a veil, gauzy, dusky wings. The grooms were all in black, except that their long stockings were reddish, and they, too, had smoky wings. Among them trotted the faithful servants, arranging a wing here, combing an antenna there, and now pausing to give each a drink of honey. The good queen mothers came to wish them joy, remembering, no doubt, the delight and excitement they had felt upon their wedding days at being able to leave the gloomy palace and fly out into the big, bright world.
          It was almost dusk before the weary servants had finished the road, but at last came the word:

"Forward!"

          Out through the gateways poured the wedding couples by tens, by scores, by hundreds! Throngs of happy, excited masters and servants crowded upon all sides to cheer them and wish them joy. The little brides and grooms swarmed upon the grass blades and flower stalks, stretched themselves, unfolded their wings, teetered and swayed, and at last up they rose, light as dandelion seeds, up and away until they were lost to sight.
          If I had shown you that palace down by the hedge, under the big oak, you would perhaps have smiled and said, "That! why, that is nothing but an anthill!" True as true can be, yet nevertheless a palace, where dwelt many queen mothers, and many princesses of royal blood, for every little bride was a princess.
          Here also in peace and unity dwelt many masters and servants, and here dwelt--but that comes later.
          The palace above ground was built of a sort of mortar composed of fragments of leaves, stalks of plants, bits of moss, tiny stones and pellets of earth; to be sure, it had not much architectural beauty, but underground there were spacious halls and chambers, tunnels and galleries, each having its special use.
          When the last of the wedding party had disappeared there was not loitering. Servants and masters hurried back to work, for there was much to be done. While many servants stayed to close the gates for the night--always a part of the ant's work--others hastened away to the nurseries, where the babies were clamoring for food.
          "Jannycane, the babies in the fourth gallery are very hungry," called out a master to a servant who was hurrying by. "Have you your honey ready?"
          "We milked some of the green cows on the pink rose-bush just a few minutes ago, master," replied the servant with a low bow, and then she scampered on to the fourth gallery.
          "We are so hungry," whimpered the baby ants, as the servant, joined by many others, hurried into the big nursery. "We're almost starved; we haven't been half taken care of to-day."
          All over the floor they lay, hundreds and hundreds of funny, white, roly-poly ant babies with neither hands nor feet, lifting up their heads like little birds with open mouths waiting to be fed.
          "There, there, hush-a-by, hush-a-by," soothed Jannycane, caressing a baby with her antennae. "You poor babies have been somewhat neglected this busy day, but so many hundreds of weddings, and so many thousands of babies all in one house, make a great deal of work, antkins. But hush-a-by, hush-a-by, here are your nurses with the sweetest honey, fresh from the cow."
          She put her mouth down to the little larva and fed him upon the honey drops she had brought. Then she washed him, and with the little brush and comb she always carries on her hind legs she made him clean and tidy; after which she patted and soothed him so gently he fell asleep, so that she could take up another.
          "Are we to bring down the eggs from the upper galleries, Jannycane?" asked one of the servants who was feeding a larva close by. "The night is going to be a little damp and cool."
          "Yes, certainly," replied Jannycane. "Master Hulix said we were to take the larvae out to-morrow and put them on the sunny side of the hill, so it will be well to set a sentinel to tell us where the sun strikes warmest. Suppose you, Scricky, and Sox watch on the outer wall, and Winken, Kettin, and I will get the servants ready to carry the eggs up when you signal."
          "Very well," responded Scricky, as she lugged a big, fat, sleeping larva to one side. "To-morrow will be a very busy day with all the new queens coming home."
          "Do run away, Claviger!" exclaimed Winken to a queer little beetle that was running about. "I'm too busy to feed you now."
          "Come over here, Claviger," called Kettin, who had just laid down her chubby charge. "I've got some honey for you; poor little blind fellow, you must be very hungry," and she patted him tenderly with her antennae.
          "Now here comes Dentata," grumbled Winken. "Kettin, if you're going to feed the beetles in here we'll have every one of them under our feet, and the masters won't like it."
          "I don't care," said Kettin, tossing her head, for she was a willful little body and fond of pets. "If the masters are going to keep all these helpless creatures in the palace, I'm going to see that they are fed and taken care of. Run away, Claviger and Dentata; run out and play with the Westwoodii in the hall, for it's nearly bedtime, and we have much to do."
          Away scampered the good little beetles. Claviger had lost his sight from living so long in the gloom of the palace. Both were great pets with the masters and the servants.
          The westwoodii were tiny ants of another family, that were also kept as pets in the palace. They ran about tapping everyone they met with their inquisitive antennae--for all ants talk with their antennae--or climbed upon the backs of the big ants to take rides with the most delightful freedom.
          There were also other dwellers in the palace, other ants so small that neither slaves nor masters were able to enter the galleries they dug in the walls. It made the queen mothers tremble to think of them. For when the larvae were left unprotected they would sometimes rush out, seize them, and drag them to their nests for food. Think how it would seem if in the walls of our houses lived dwarfs less than two feet high who would drag our babies to their horrid dens! Was it any wonder the larvae turned pale at the mention of their names?
          "Every antlet is fed and fast asleep," said Jannycane as she laid the last baby down. "Now we must trot off and feed the queens and get them ready for bed. I'm quite worn out with the day's work."
          "So am I," yawned Winken; "my eyes are so heavy I can hardly see. Now, Kettin, don't you make a noise in the hall with the pets and wake up the babies."
          Kettin was a young thing and fond of play, even if she was a servant, and I'm afraid she made a bit of a face behind Winken's back, for Winken was old and staid, and hadn't much fun left in her.
          The gates of the palace were thrown open very early next day, for the morning was beautifully bright. Then began the hunt for the little brides of yesterday--as for the grooms, never again would they see home, for no male is allowed to live in the palace after the wedding day. Masters and servants are all females.
          Jannycane, Sox, Winken, Scricky, and Kettin, with hundreds of the servants, brought the little brides home. Some of them they led by a leg or an antenna, and some they carried bodily. But before they entered the palace as queens their beautiful gauzy wings were torn off. Sometimes this was done by the servants and sometimes by the poor things themselves. For they would never need them again. Nevermore would they soar away into the sweet summer sunshine; the rest of their lives must be spent underground in the gloom of the palace.
          The day was, as Scricky had said, very busy. There were the new queens to find and attend to; the old ones to feed and care for; the babies to clean, and feed, and sun; the eggs to change from gallery to gallery, since the day was warm; the cocoons to watch, so that if any one of the antlets wanted to come out of his silken covering he could be helped to cut his way through, and afterwards combed and fed.
          And there were the cows to see to, the little green cows who lived upon the rosebush; these must be milked, and herded, and protected from their enemies. Each tiny cow had two wee horns sticking out of her back, and the ants smoothed and caressed her with their antennae, and squeezed her gently about the body until from the honey horns welled limpid drops of delicious honey which the ants lapped up. The ant servants went to their herds lean and lank, but they came away chubby and round, for each was carrying home in her stomach honey for the queens, the babies, and the pets.
          But honey was not their only food. The masters often went hunting and brought home tender, juicy insects, and they fed also upon the juices of ripe fruit, worms, and lizards.
          All these things had to be attended to during the day, so that it was as Scricky had said it would be--very, very busy. Yet the masters helped, too, and so, though they were very tired little servants who closed the gates that night, still Kettin was gay enough to play a game of tag with the Westwoodii, and give them a ride, for which she was roundly scolded by Winken.
          Jannycane looked very grave as she sang the last baby to sleep, and sighed deeply as she laid it down. For Jannycane had made a dreadful discovery that day, which made her tender heart ache.
          "Well," said Sox, coming in from one of the upper galleries. "The masters have decided to raid the anthill by the willows early tomorrow morning; so we shall have to get the galleries ready for the pupae at once. The masters say they will need many hundreds of new servants as soon as these new queens begin to lay eggs, so they shall bring all the pupae and larvae they find in the hill."
          "Never mind about preparing the galleries just now," said Jannycane, quietly. "Go feed the queens and see that the pets are comfortable for the night; I will go and speak to the masters myself."
          "My!" exclaimed Sox, with a long breath. "One would almost think she was a master. What airs for a little black servant! Did you ever see the like?"
          "Be still, Sox!" cried Kettin, indignantly. "You well know Jannycane never puts on airs. She has something of importance to say to the master, you may be sure. Good, gentle Jannycane!"
          "I think Kettin is right," observed Scricky. "Jannycane has seemed worried and sad all day. I think she has something on her mind."
          Meanwhile Jannycane had hurried through the hall, stopping only a moment to caress little blind Claviger. The masters were busy planning the campaign, and did not look up when Jannycane entered.
          "Your pardon, masters," she said at last, standing with bent head.
          "Ah, here is Jannycane," said Luthus, one of the masters who had often noticed Jannycane's faithful service, and was therefore fond of her. "What is it, little one?"
          "Oh, madam," replied Jannycane sadly, "I am the bearer of terrible tidings. This morning, as I was brushing the good Queen Alo, I observed something strange about her shape. You well know, my masters, that we workers have but poor sight after living so long in the gloom of the palace, but after a time I could see that the something growing out of her back was one of the dreaded mites."
          "Woe, woe!" cried the masters; "these are indeed heavy tidings."
          "All day," went on Janny cane, "I have watched carefully, and I think at least fifty, both masters and servants, are afflicted with this dreadful disease. As was my duty, I came to warn you."
          You are a good and faithful servant," said Hulix, one of the bravest warriors of the palace. "There's but one thing to do. Tomorrow we must make the raid on the nest under the willows, as we intended, and after victory remove the whole household to the vanquished city--except," and here she dropped her voice sadly, "except those who are already attacked by the disease. These, for the sake of the others, must remain here until death releases them."
          "That is the only way," agreed all the masters solemnly.
          "Now, Jannycane," said Luthus, "it must be your duty to find out tonight and tomorrow, while we are gone, all those who are to be left behind, and to report to us upon our return. But see to it that you tell no one of your discovery, or the palace will be in an uproar. Everything must be carried on with perfect system and order.
          Early next morning the gates of the palace were thrown open, and a little later a regiment of soldiers, with Hulix at their head, came out and marched rapidly down the road toward the willow. A few servants and queens watched them depart, and with them were many callows, masters who were too young to fight, whose armor was as yet unhardened. Within the palace other troops were rapidly forming under Luthus, Julo, Pololomo, and Herdus.
          The black ants of Willow Hill were soon warned of the approach of the enemy by the sentinels stationed at the outer gate of the city, and a brigade of their bravest soldiers was sent to guard the foot of the hill. Skirmishes were soon taking place all along the line; some prisoners were captured and at once dragged into the city. As the fighting grew fiercer an aid-de-camp was sent back to the palace to hasten reenforcements. Much alarmed, several regiments started on the double-quick for Willow Hill.
          In the meantime the inhabitants of Willow Hill were almost wild with terror. In the galleries were thousands of the queen mother's helpless little ones entrusted to their care, and too well they understood that these pupae and larvae were wanted by their cruel enemy. With all possible haste the little ones were brought up from the nurseries and placed outside the gates upon the side opposite from the besieging army. Should they be vanquished, they could then carry their little charges to a place of safety before the enemy could reach them. Here, too, the young princesses gathered, that they might escape from the same side.
          The troops from the palace, now sufficiently reenforced, hurled themselves upon the black ants. Thousands of ants fought in single combat. Standing upon their hind legs they seized each other by the mandibles, and bringing their abdomens forward spurted venom into the wounds their dreadful jaws had made. Here five, six, even ten ants had seized each other, forming chains firmly locked together, pulling here and there in the wildest rage. Here many were dragged away prisoners, arriving at camp only to meet a cruel death. Here was a warrior with the jaws of her enemy still biting through her leg, although the body had been torn from the head; even in death that horrible grip held fast.
          New troops were constantly arriving, and when old Pololomo came upon the field there was no longer any doubt of victory for the attacking army. They hurled themselves upon the black warriors, assailing them at all points with such fury that they swept all before them, up the hill and to the very gates of the city.
          The vanquished army had made desperate resistance, but was now put to flight. Yet, despite their fear, many of them, even at hazard of their lives, rushed into their city to rescue the larvae that were still in the galleries, while others seized the pupae and larvae they had earlier brought outside the gate and fled for safety,--too late; for their enemies were upon them, seizing their precious charges and driving them from the city walls.
          The victorious army now swarmed down the avenues of the city insearch of the little ant babies and pupae, who were quietly sleeping in their silken night-gowns, and, each seizing a baby, started with it toward the gate.
          "Halt!" cried Pololomo, who was stationed with a guard at the outer gate. "Carry the little ones back immediately. We shall make this city our future home. Our next task will be to bring from the palace our faithful servants, that they may learn the road, so that they will be able to assist us in bringing our queens and larvae hither.
          Some of the soldiers turned at once with their burdens; others resisted, only to have the pupae wrested from them by the guards and returned to the gallery.
          But no sooner was it fully understood that the dreadful mite had attacked the palace than all trouble ceased, for all ants know that for the victims of that pest there is no hope but death. Without delay the warriors set out upon the homeward road.
          At the palace gates the servants were waiting to receive the pupae that were to become servants like themselves. What, then, was their astonishment to perceive the warriors returning empty handed! Faithful Jannycane had kept her secret. But now all was explained. Without a word each servant crouched and allowed a master to take her up carefully in her mandibles and carry her over the road that she might learn the way to the new city.
          Soon the slaves were busily trotting back and forth from palace to vanquished city, bearing eggs, larvae, pupae, and queens, in fact anything that would be of use to them, even to the bits of stone and sticks they had used in building embankments. Sometimes it owuld take a dozen of them to roll along a valued pebble, which was to them an immense boulder. Among them scampered the little Westwoodii, tapping their master's legs with their antennae as they ran, and sometimes when they became tired, climbing on the backs of the big ants to ride for the rest of the way.
          Masters and servants toiled on, and it was quite dark before all of the household was safe in the new hom and the gates closed. All, did I say? No, not all, for in the deserted palace, in loneliness and gloom, sat two hundred ants, queens, masters, and servants, victims of the plague, doomed to a lingering death.
          It was some days before the city settled down to peaceful life, and longer still before Jannycane recovered her spirits. Indeed, both masters and servants were much depressed, and the antlets would have had a dull time if it had not been for Kettin, bright, gay, little Kettin, who sat in the big nursery with the roly-poly larvae tumbling about her while she told them the most wonderful stories.
          "Once upon a time," said Kettin, "my grandma, who was a very wise ant indeed, was captured by a great monster called a man, and taken by him, with many of her family, to a wonderful room where many other ants lived who did all their work in glass nests."
          "What's glass, Kettin?" asked one wee ant.
          "Oh, don't you know that, stupid?" laughed Kettin, gayly. "Well, no more do I; only Granny said it was like out of doors, but you little sillies don't know that either, I suppose!"
          "Yes, we do," cried the babies. "Jannycane took us out to be sunned on the hill today. Out of doors is all clear and shiny. Isn't it, Kettin?"
          "Well, then, glass is clear and shining," went on Kettin. "On the great table--don't ask me what that is, little nuisance,--were many nests and many ants, and they would tell the loveliest tales to one another."
          "One ant told Granny of her beautiful home in Texas, far, far away. They kept about their palace a big, round yard from which the ants had cut out all the weeds and grass except the ant-rice."
          "How did they cut it out, Kettin?" asked another little larva.
          "Well, you see they have no servants; so the masters have to do all the work. Two ants start out to cut a grass blade. One climbs upon the blade and bends it with all his weight, so that the other can cut it with his strong mandibles close to the ground. But they let the ant-rice grow, and when it is seeded they take off the little grains and carry them away to their galleries, which are called granaries. Then they have a husking bee to clean and take off the hulls that cover the grains, and they carry the chaff away and dump it outside of the clean yard. Sometimes in damp weather the grains sprout; then they must all be brought up into the sun and carefully picked over, and only the sound grain taken back. So you can see what busy creatures they are. These are called harvesting ants."
          "Tell us some more," cried the larvae, as soon as Kettin paused to catch her breath.
          "Well," went on Kettin, "Granny met there other ants from Texas, called 'parasol ants,' because they go up a tree, or bush in a long procession, and each cuts with her sharp mandibles a round piece of leaf, and then they trail down the tree again, each with a bit of leaf held over her head like a parasol.
          "What do they want with the leaves, Kettin?" asked the inquisitive little one.
          "Oh, they chew it all up to a pulp," explained Kettin. "Then they make deliciate gray, lacy comb of it down in their earthern palace, to keep their babies in, one baby in each cell, not all together in a big nursery, as we keep you."
          "I shouldn't like it, Kettin," declared one little larva. "It wouldn't be any fun, because you couldn't tell us stories."
          "I suppose you wouldn't like it," said Kettin. "They haven't any servants, and when they grow up they sometimes have to dig all night long."
          "There were other ants in the glass nest from the Garden of the Gods in Colorado," went on Kettin. "They wer called honey ants, and some of these ants turn themselves into living honey jars. They milk and milk the honey cows until their abdomens get full and clear like big white currangs. Then they go and hang themselves to the ceiling of the honey gallery, a sort of a pantry, and when the ants need honey in the winter time they go and drink from the honey pots."
          "I shouldn't like to be a honey pot," yawned a little larva who was very fat and lazy.
          "No, I should think not," laughed Kettin. "I know what would please you. There are certain other servant-holder ants that never do anything for themselves, not working as our good masters do, but letting the servants feed anc clean them, and even carry them about, until they lose all power to do anything for themselves. That's what you would like, lazy bones."
          At this moment Jannycane's voice cried, "Kettin,Kettin, come here." There was something of fear and terror in its tone that made Kettin go flying out into the hall as fast as her six feet could take her. Jannycane was standing by the wall wringing her front feet in despair.
          "Dear Jannycane, what is it?" begged Kettin, embracing her with her antennae. "What has happened?"
          "Oh, Kettin!" sobbed Jannycane. "Why is it that I should always discover awful things? You know how queer and cross poor old Winken has beensince we moved?"
          "I should think I do," replied Kettin. "She has done nothing but scold me day in and day out."
          "Well, today she seemed to feel very badly," explained Jannycane, "and I went to her to caress her, and by her antennae was a wee mite, so tiny you could hardly see it; but there it was, nevertheless."
          "Oh, oh!" cried Kettin, who had the tenderest heart in the world. "What shall we do?"
          "The masters must be told at once," replied Jannycane. "But what can be done with poor Winken? Shall she be put out to die? Oh, if she were only sfe in the old palace, then she would have some care and companionship. Then it would not seem so dreadful."
          When the masters heard the sad news they at once decided that a rigid examination must take place to see if there were any more victims among them. This was done, but no others were discovered. Poor Winken alone was to be an outcast.
          "If there were any one among us," said Pololomo gravely, "who would be brave enough to take poor Winken by the antennae and lead her to the old home, it would be nobly done, indeed."
          Before anyone could reply, Kettin sprang from among the servants and stood before Pololomo.
          "I will take her, my masters," she said in a clear, sweet voice. "I know the road and I will start at once."
          "Do you understand that it is at the risk of your life, Kettin?" asked Pololomo. "Upon your return you will have to be examined by our sanitary surgeons before reentering the city, and if you have in any way caught the plague, you, too, will be condemned to remain in the old palace until death shall release you."
          All this the brave little Kettin had thought of; but a few moments later she was on her way, walking backward and leading poor weak Winken--Winken who had scoded her ever since she was a larva--leading her gently by the tips of the antennae, keeping as far from her as possible, but leading her tenderly back to the old home.
          "This is wonderfully kind and brave of you, Kettin," said Winken, feebly. "I am sorry I was so cross to you."
          "Never mind that, Winken," replied Kettin. "I only wish I could cure you."
          "No one can do that," responded Winken. "But now through your goodness I shall have a warm, safe home, and when I die I shall be laid away in our little graveyard under the leaves, according to our ancient custom of burying our dead. This is a great comfort to me."
          At the foot of the palace hill Kettin bade Winken a sad farewell, and then stared on her homeward journey. After a time she stopped and rolled herself over and over in the dirt and rubbed every part of her body on the ground. Then she sat up and washed herself with her front feet and combed her entire body with the little combs on the last joint on her hind legs. Then once more she started home.
          Would she be allowed to enter? Her heart beat fast as she neared the city gate, and the old palace seemed reaching out to seize her and draw her back to its despair.
          "Halt!" came the stern voice of the first guard. "Who goes there?"
          "I am Kettin," replied she, trembling. "I have just returned from the deserted palace, where I had led poor Winken, who was infested with the dread mite."
          The guard shrank back from her, and then scuttled away toward the city, only to return, bringing with him two other ants.
          "Ah, Kettin," said one of them kindly, for he had often seen her in the nursery with the larvae. "So you have returned. Do not tremble so, little one; I have great hope for you, but for the sake of the community we must make a careful examination.
          How Kettin's antennae waved with joy when the good doctor told her he could discover no trace of disease. But even yet she was not free, but must be examined at other outposts.
          One guard after another bade her pass until the last one gave her leave to enter the gate. She had escaped contagion.
          "Our Kettin is a heroine," said Jannycane, that night after the larvae had been put to bed, and she and Scricky were watching Kettin playing in the hall with the little blind beetles. "For all she is so young and happy, she has the bravest heart of any of us."
          "Good-night!" cried Kettin, gayly. "The gates have long been shut, and every baby is asleep. So goodnight, everybody."

Who is Kettin?
The Ultimate Guide to Ants

Trees and Plants
The Oak Tree
A Year in the Life of a Tree
Old-Fashioned Roses

The Queen Mother
Picture of a Queen
Queen Laying Eggs
An Alate/Winged Queen

The Servants
The Worker Ant
Workers tending Eggs

Brides and Grooms
Picture with Winged Ants
Preparation for the Mating Flight
The Nuptial Flight

The Larvae
Picture of Larvae

The Ant Hill
Nest Cross-Section in an Oak tree trunk
Nest in a Home's Exterior Wall
Types of Nests Clickable picture w/links to different species & their nests. Great!
The Deepest Nest in the World

Parts of the Ant Body
Anatomy of the Ant
Poster showing Inner and Outer Parts of the Ant body
The Mandibles of an Ant Lion

Different Types of Ants
Fire Ants
Army Ants
Leaf-cutter or Parasol Ants
Photo of Leaf-cutter Ants
Westwoodii: This is a type of ant found in England. If you are able to find anything out about this species, please let me know so I can include it. Thanks!
Harvesting Ants
Honey Ants

The Food of Ants
Ant Meals
Ant Collecting Seeds
Ants Cooperate to Carry Food to the Nest
How Ants Gather Honey and Store it in their Stomachs
Hone Feeding
Ant Rice (Aristida oligantha)Image

The Warfare of Ants
The Miracle of Ants: Defence and War Tactics Please note: This site was authored by a Muslim gentleman; while it does refer to God as Allah, the scientific information is quite interesting.
Ants: Chemical Warfare
The Sting of the Fire-Ant

Other Insects
The Claviger Beetle
The Aphid, part of an Ant's Herd
The Mite, Scourge of the Ant Colony

Maybe You were Wondering...
Why do Ants follow each other in a straight line?
How to Catch an Ant

Garden of the Gods
History

Plague
Ants are not the only ones who suffer when disease ravages a land.
The Plague of Athens, 4th and 5th Centuries B.C.
Archaeology Report: Grave from plague of Athens found

The Black Plague, the killer of 25 million people in the 1330s.
A Brief History
Plague & Public Health in Renaissance Europe
The Black Plague Incl. creative writing assignment for students.

Influenza Outbreak of 1918-1919
Pandemic: Influenza Outbreak

Heroines
What makes a woman a heroine? Here are four women of history, American and world, who distinguished themselves by a brave deed.

Dolley Madison: The wife of President James Madison, Dolly will always be remembered as the woman who saved the nation's portrait of George Washington when the White House was burned by the British during the War of 1812.
Official Biography from the White House
The Life, Letters and Legacy of Dolley Payne Madison

Harriet Tubman: This brave woman was responsible for leading hundreds of escaped slaves North by the Underground Railroad.
Harriet Tubman & the Underground Railroad for Children Authored by second-graders.
The Harriet Tubman Home
"The Most Remarkable Woman of this Age," an original article from 1863.

Gladys Aylward: Led by God to go to China as a missionary, Gladys Aylward rescued 100 children during the war in 1938. She was called Ai-weh-deh or Virtuous One, by the Chinese.
Memorable Christians of the Past
Essential Facts and Extensive Reading list about Gladys Aylward

Corazon Aquino: When her husband was assasinated, this mother of five took his place in the Phillipines election. She won, and became the first woman President of the Phillipines.
Heroism in Action
Time's Woman of the Year for 1986.

Games!
The Ant Nest Stories & games
The Magic School Bus gets Ants in Its Pants

More Fun!
Be an Ant Detective A guided activity for out-of-doors observation
Watch the Ants At Steve's Ant Farm. Refresh your page to see the cam pictures.
Ant Farm Movie
Robotic Ants What will they think of next?
Build an Artifical Colony Plans and how to catch a colony-pretty involved
How to Keep Ants Not as involved
Secrets to Building a Healthy Colony
How to Feed Your Colony Two recipes
Ready-Made Ant Farms Different shapes and sizes
Build a Paper Mache Ant Hill

Puzzles!
Puzzle 1
Maze!
Puzzle 3