bombs crashed into maternity wards. And then at last the heavy
rearguard: the holiest of holies, the living spirit of the hive, the
queen. Majestically she was carried on her warrior's backs; enormous as
she loomed on the visi-screen, the white of her uncouth body was hardly
visible, swarmed over as she was by her fanatical courtiers which,
licking and caressing, kept her covered as by a shield. Her consorts
trotted meekly in her trail; unhappy little men, rudely aroused from
their harem sinecure, jealously guarded and prodded on by the queen's
countless ladies in waiting and the palace guard.

* * * * *

Things moved very fast now; Lee's quick pencil strokes could hardly
follow the events:

10:30 a.m. The foremost columns are now out of reach of the
visi-screens. But I can see them moving along the logs with the naked
eye. Interesting new fact: the crossbreeds from the most belligerent
species are far and ahead of the rest. They don't take time out to drive
tunnels. But even the tunnels of the more pacific strains are forging
ahead at an extraordinary rate; six feet across the floor already....

10:40: "_Bellicosus_" has reached the south wall; it is now moving
along the wall toward the "Lignin-Filler-Spout." There is no hesitancy
as they change direction at the angle of 90 degrees. The Queens are now
coming up at a very rapid rate from the mounds farthest to the rear.
It's fortunate we have these differences in behaviorism and temperament
because otherwise a terrific traffic jam would occur at the
"Filler-Spout"....

10:50: "_Bellicosus_" is now ascending to the "Filler-Spout." The
warriors have ringed the pipe. With their body-tremors they are giving
the "come-on" signal to the workers. The workers are piling in--an
average batch--about 65,000. It's a good thing that there is an air
space in these horizontal nerve-path pipes. That gives them a chance to
march along the ceiling and work down from there....

11:00: There are now a score of columns converging at the
"Filler-Spout." Amazing that even under such provoking conditions
"_ant-termes_" won't fight. The warriors act like the most accomplished
traffic-cops; it's marvelous how they keep their columns in order and
keep them moving side by side into The Brain....

11:10: The first million, I should say, is now well inside the
"Filler-Spout." They're marching at a rate of at least 300 yards per
hour; amazing speed; I never saw