382 HOUSEHOLD INSECTS 



found myriads of the house species in the straw bottle 

 envelopes in the wine cellar of his house. This occurrence 

 of the insect in straw in barns may account for its occasional 

 invasion of houses, as we shall see. 



Extraordinary invasions of dwelling-houses. — Under 

 ordinary conditions, this book-louse is not a serious pest 

 in households. The few that may occur here and there 

 in musty unused books and papers give no occasion for 

 alarm or worry. It is only when some material in which 

 they breed readily and rapidly is unwittingly allowed to 

 lie in a room unused and undisturbed for a long time that 

 they occasionally swarm over the house in almost in- 

 credible numbers. Straw or husk mattresses seem to be 

 favorite breeding places for them and apparently afford 

 about the only centers of infection for this pest. For- 

 tunately, their invasions are rare. There are a few in- 

 stances on record where this psocid has invaded house- 

 holds in immense numbers and has proven exceedingly 

 difficult to eradicate. 



One notable example is given in Insect Life in a letter 

 written by Alfred C. Stokes of Trenton, New Jersey, Oct. 8, 

 1888. His letter detailing this invasion and describing 

 the efforts to rid the house of the pest runs as follows : — 



"In March, 1886, a lady here bought a new mattress 

 composed of hair and corn-husks. It was used daily 

 until the following August when the family left home for 

 a six weeks' vacation. A day or two after the return in 

 September, there were noticed on a pair of shoes, which 

 had not been in recent use, several little colorless creatures 

 resembling the common book-lice in appearance, some 

 of which have been sent to you. Continuing the examina- 

 tion, what was her horror to find the under surface of 



