The Empire of the Ants Summary

The Empire of the Ants

• Captain Gerilleau was appointed to address an ant plague in Badama, a task he found demeaning due to his irregular promotion.
• Holroyd, the engineer on Gerilleau's new gunboat, the Benjamin Constant, served as the captain's confidant.
• The captain initially dismissed the ant problem as insignificant

Initial Encounters and Growing Concern

• Holroyd gained an appreciation for the overwhelming power of nature and the relative insignificance of man, stemming from his voyage up the Amazon.
• Initial accounts of the ants detailed them as a nuisance, capable of driving people from their homes.
• A man who drowned himself to escape the ants died later as if from snake poison.
• As Gerilleau gathered more information, he realized the ants were a new, large species eating up the country.
• The term "Saüba" became increasingly prevalent, indicating the growing influence of the ants

Details About the Ants

• The ants being approached had unique characteristics, including large eyes, a poisonous sting, and non-random movements.
• The leaf-cutting ants have little workers and big commanding workers.
• The captain and Holroyd spend two days arguing if the ants have eyes and if they bite or sting.

Foreshadowing and Unease

• Holroyd experienced a growing sense of unease, contemplating the potential for ants to evolve and challenge human dominance.
• Holroyd thought they have a language, they have intelligence and they could start storing knowledge, just as men had done by means of books and records, use weapons to form great empires.

The Derelict Cuberta

• A derelict cuberta (canoe), the Santa Rosa, was encountered with two dead men aboard.
• The dead men's bodies showed signs of unusual decay, and the boat was infested with ants.
• The ants were large, black, and moved deliberately.
• Some ants were larger with bigger heads, similar to the master workers of leaf-cutter ants.
• Holroyd had a sensation that both kinds of ants were wearing accoutrements, strapped about their bodies by bright white bands like white metal threads.
• Lieutenant da Cunha was ordered to board the cuberta to adjust the cable.
• Da Cunha was attacked by the ants and died from their sting.

Decisions and Actions

• To incinerate the ants, the Santa Rosa was set ablaze.
• The Benjamin Constant reached Badama, where the town appeared deserted and infested with ants.
• Gerilleau fired the gun at Badama, wrecking the sugar-mill and abandoned store.
• Gerilleau decided to return downstream for instructions.

Holroyd's Return to England

• Holroyd returned to England with the goal of alerting people to the potential danger of the ants before it was too late.
• Holroyd noted that the ants threatened British Guiana and the Colonial Office ought to get to work upon them at once.

The Ant Threat

• The ants were recognized as a serious threat, with the Brazilian government offering a reward for their extermination.
• The ants had conquered a significant area and captured at least one ship.
• They were believed to have bridged the Capuarana arm and were pushing towards the Amazon.
• The ants used poison akin to snake poison.
• They were thought to manufacture it, and that the larger individuals among them carry the needle-like crystals of it in their attacks upon men.

Legends and Future Predictions

• Legends of the ants' capabilities circulated, including the use of tools, knowledge of fire and metals, and organized engineering feats.
• The ants had an organized method of record and communication.
• Holroyd believed the ants would dispossess man over tropical South America.
• Holroyd predicts by 1911 or thereabouts, the ants ought to strike the Capuarana Extension Railway, and force themselves upon the attention of the European capitalist.
• Holroyd predicts by 1920 the ants will be half-way down the Amazon and by 1950 or ‘60 at the latest for the discovery of Europe.