192 



MOSQUITOES. 



teen days, no mosquitoes will breed in this water so im- 

 portant upon prairie farms. Small bodies of water in pools, 

 ditches and ponds should be treated in a similar manner, 

 especially early in the season, when the surface is still free 



Fig. 156.- 

 Original. 



-Mosquito, larva and eggs; also a single egg. Greatly enlarged. 



from projecting plants. A few gallons, or even quarts, 

 thrown upon the surface of the water when the wind is 

 blowing fairly strong, will distribute the oil uniformly 

 over the whole surface of the pond, and thus kill all the 

 mosquitoes. Like most remedies against noxious insects 

 this one should be used in time, or before the enemy has be- 

 come very numerous. These ag- 

 gressive insects can be kept aw^ay 

 from houses,barns and cattle in the 

 field by a smudge, or by strong- 

 smelling substances, and in regions 

 w^here they occur in vast numbers, 

 such smudges are built in the even- 

 ings. Sportsmen anoint their 

 faces and hands with various 

 compounds composed of mutton tallow and oil of penny- 

 royal, or of oil of tar. The following mixture is excellent 

 for this purpose : 



Olive oil, 3 parts; oil of pennyroyal, 2 parts; ghxerine, 1 

 part; ammonia, 1 part. 



A wash with ammonia usually removes all bad effects of 

 their bites, at least in most persons. The poison injected by 



Fig. 157. — Mosquito, pu] 

 Greatly enlarged. Original. 



