346 Philippine Journal of Science »» 



ing it a favorable habitat for the termite. To get rid of this 

 danger the interspace between the tiebeams and the ceiling is 

 somewhat extended and several windows are made in the ex- 

 ternal walls as shown in Plate XIII, figs. 4 and 5. 



Brick walls. — Care should be taken to prevent the entrance 

 of the termite into brick walls, because it is difficult to destroy 

 the insect, which lives in the voids between the bricks. In order 

 to prevent its intrusion, the surface of brick walls should be 

 entirely covered with cement mortar as shown in Plate XIII, 

 fig. 3. 



Tiles. — Two kinds of tiles are used for roofing Japanese 

 houses; namely, ordinary tile and hanging tile. In laying the 

 former, wet clay is used for bedding; the tiles are embedded 

 in clay one by one and fixed to each other with lime mortar. 

 Clay is never used with the other kind, the tiles being laid on 

 the roof directly and fixed with pieces of wire. It is desirable 

 to use the hanging tile only, for the layer of clay is occasionally 

 used as an abode by the termites when they reach the roof. 



Timbers. — All the timbers that are used in hidden places are 

 treated with Termol, a special chemical made in the Camphor 

 Bureau of the Government. Both immersion and impregnation 

 are adopted for treating timbers. 



Mortar and concrete. — It is strictly forbidden to use lime 

 mortar and lime concrete, for lime is attacked by the termite. 

 In constructing Government buildings, cement mortar and ce- 

 ment concrete only are used. 



DEFECTS OF THE TERMITE-PROOF BUILDING CONSTRUCTION 



It has been proved that if the concrete layer be kept in a 

 sound condition — in other words, if there are neither cracks 

 nor joints in the layer — the above-described method of con- 

 struction is entirely satisfactory in preventing the intrusion 

 of the termite from the ground. But there are many records 

 in Formosa of theoretically well-constructed termite-proof build- 

 ings being infested by termites, notwithstanding the existence 

 of a perfect concrete layer. 



Is there any defect in the present termite-proof building con- 

 struction, or is there some way by which termites can infest 

 buildings that is not controlled by means of the concrete layer? 

 The answer to these questions is very simple. 



As shown on a preceding page the mature males and females 

 of Coptotermes formosanus leave the old nest in a swarm early 

 in June. After separating into pairs, each couple establishes a 



