THE COMMON BEDBUG 113 



increasing in the folds of a bed net along the seam up and 

 down the back. Every now and then a bedbug was seen 

 on the net and killed and then down came the bed for a 

 treatment. Probably the bed had been treated half a 

 dozen times when at last, in sheer desperation, the ento- 

 mologist was called in. We were greatly puzzled at first 

 because the bedstead was apparently free from the pests ; 

 but when told that the bugs were always seen on the out- 

 side of the net the search was begun there with the happy 

 result just given above. 



These insects procure their food at night, attacking the 

 exposed parts of the body. During the day they remain 

 hidden in the bedstead and in the mattress and about the 

 room. Somewhat colored reports have been written re- 

 garding the sagacity and cunning of this insect to gain 

 access to beds and remain hidden during the day. 



THE BITE OF THE BEDBUG 



To many persons it is very irritating and causes swelling 

 and produces large red blotches on the skin. The writer 

 remembers vividly his first and youthful experience with 

 bedbugs in a city boarding house while attending school. 

 In this instance they paid especial attention to his neck 

 which was one mass of red blotches before he knew the 

 cause of his restless and uneasy slumbers. Many people 

 are not sensitive to the bite of this insect and seem never 

 to be aware of its existence, even when present. So far 

 as known, there is no poison secreted in the mouth of the 

 bedbug and the inflammation seems to be due simply to 

 the irritation caused by the puncture. 



