T,2 M-:\V YORK STATE MUSEUM 



Outdoor nests of ants can be destroyed by the use of carbon bisul- 

 fid. Make a hole several inches deep with a broom handle and 

 put therein about i ounce of carbon bisulfid and cover quickly. 

 In the case of a large nest, several holes should be made at a dis- 

 tance of a foot or a foot and a half and each charged with carbon 

 bisulfid. A more recent method is scooping out a portion of the 

 soil and filling the cavity with a solution of cyanide of potassium, 

 using I ounce of this deadly poison to a gallon of water. Another 

 probably equally effective method is the sprinkling of the surface 

 of the nest with fine particles of potassium cyanide. This material, 

 it should be remembered, is a most dangerous poison and every 

 precaution should be taken to avoid disastrous results. The 

 nests of the large black ant are usually found in timbers, such as 

 studding in the walls and are therefore wellnigh inaccessible. 

 The writer has seen 2x4 joists badly riddled by the operations 

 of this insect. 



Trapping the ants by means of sponges dipped in sweetened 

 water is frequently advised and gives good results if conscientiously 

 carried out. First, attractive foods should be removed, so far as 

 possible, prior to the distribution of the pieces of sponge saturated 

 with sweetened w^ater. These latter should be gathered from 

 time to time and the ants clinging thereto destroyed by dropping 

 in boiling water. 



Cockroaches 



Cockroaches and their smaller cousins, the croton bugs, are 

 frequently the bane of the neat housekeeper, particularly in old 

 city dwellings. These species are distributed through commercial 

 agencies and have become w^ell established in most large cities and 

 villages on the principal routes of travel, especially seaports and 

 places on rivers or canals, since these pests are invariably found 

 on ships and boats. The old houses with their numerous inac- 

 cessible crannies and crevices afford a multitude of hiding places 

 and enable the roaches to exist year after year, in spite of strenuous 

 efforts to exterminate them. 



Description. At least three species of cockroaches may be 

 found in houses. The American cockroach^ is a large, dark brown 

 species nearly an inch and a half long and has well developed 

 wings. The Oriental cockroach or black beetle^ is a nearly wing- 

 less, dark brown or black form about an inch long. The Australian 



iPeriplaneta americana Linn. 

 ^Periplancta orientalis Fabr. 



