7 ° 
PSYCHE 
[June-August 
insects during a summer’s stay in a small town in Virginia. The whole place 
was thoroughly infested, and it was not an uncommon thing to see mattresses and 
bed-slats turned out to air, which were literally white with the insect’s eggs. The 
writer’s room was as bad as the rest; the old-fashioned bedstead was full of 
them, while during the day scores of them could be detected hiding in the walls. 
The place was almost unbearable, for the insects were not satisfied in staying 
indoors, but were frequently found secreted in one’s clothes. One night, return- 
ing to the room from outside, two were found beneath the collar, while occasion- 
ally, one would be found hiding within a pamphlet which was carried in my pocket. 
Wherever they were very numerous, many could be found frequenting privy- 
houses or other similar places, where they would be sure to obtain an occasional 
meal, visiting the host at every chance, night or day. That these insects are 
very active and freely move from place to place, that is to say, not necessarily 
confining themselves to certain rooms or houses, and hence not directly depend- 
ent upon any one host, is evidently true. Mr. William F. Fiske informed me that 
when stationed at Tryon, North Carolina, while working in the laboratory at 
night, bedbugs would crawl along the under sides of the edges of the table and 
stealthily approaching his bared arms, would attempt to feed. 
.\t Washington, D. C., bedbugs were active during December, 1904, until 
Tanuary, 1905. Nymphs in instar I, were found concealed within clothing 
hanging in a closet: they were active and had been feeding, .\dults and large 
nymphs, recently fed, were also found during those months^. During the last 
week in December, 1904, adults were observed in the middle of the night crawl- 
ing from their hiding-places in the walls of a brightly lighted room, evidently in 
search of a host. On another occasion, about the same time, an adult was sur- 
prised in the act of visiting a host at 7 P. M., in a warm and very brightly lighted 
room. It was feeding from the side of the face, and darted quickly away when 
the host stirred in his sleep; it was found to be well gorged with blood. These 
observations were made in supposedly respectable boarding-houses, where the 
presence of this insect was unknown, or at least not commented upon, by the 
other guests. 
Some important neglected points in its life-history. 
I. Its relation to Man from medical and sanitary points of view. 
Professor Herbert Osborn, in a letter dated January 30th, 1905, says. 
a. Southall (1730) makes the following, original observation: “And I have seen, and do assert, they do bite in 
the cold as well as hot seasons.” p. 28. 
