244 SECOND THOUSAND QUESTIONS IN AGRICULTURE 



will other kinds of grain. The best poison to use is strychnine, the 

 barley being coated with it in accordance with the "Government 

 formula," as follows. 



Whole barley (recleaned) 18 Ibs. 



Strychnine sulphate 1 oz. 



Soda (bicarbonate) 1 oz. 



Saccharine 1 oz. 



Thin starch paste 1 pt. 



Corn syrup (Karo or equal) 2 ozs. 



The best results are obtained by scattering the poisoned grain on' 

 the ground early in the morning, back of the hole. Not upon exca- 

 vated dirt that the squirrel has thrown out. It should not be spread 

 before a rain or when the ground is wet or when there is a heavy dew, 

 as the poison will be washed off and no results obtained. It should be 

 widely scattered so that the squirrel will be compelled to pick it up 

 a grain at a time and place it in the cheek pouch. 



Fumigating Squirrels and Gophers. When the soil is moist 

 excellent work can be done with the fumes of carbon bisulphide or 

 "kilmol." A ball of waste jute or gunny, cotton, horse manure, oak 

 ball, or other absorbent material is saturated with kilmol or carbon 

 bisulphide and placed in the mouth of the squirrel burrow; the hole 

 may then be closed with dirt and the gas allowed to diffuse throughout 

 the burrow. This will be sufficient in many instances; as a general 

 rule, however, it is better to ignite the ball with a match or torch. A 

 sharp explosion usually occurs immediately, which forces the 'burning 

 gas deeply into the burrow. The burning of the bisulphide produces 

 sulphur dioxide and carbon dioxide, both of which are poisonous if 

 breathed for a sufficient length of time 'in an inclosed space. Kilmol, 

 when ignited, also produces sulphur dioxide and carbon dioxide and 

 contains other powerful irritants in addition which set up a violent 

 inflammation in the lungs of the squirrel, so that the effects are severe 

 and lasting. 



The waste ball method is applicable only when the ground con- 

 tains sufficient moisture to prevent the formation of cracks and 

 crevices through which the poisonous gases could escape. There is 

 also danger of fire where the vegetation is dry enough to burn. 



The Squirrel Destructor. The squirrel destructor is an apparatus 

 for forcing poisonous gases into the squirrel burrow. It is constructed 

 principally of galvanized iron, and is simply a double action air pump 

 which forces air through a chamber into which one ounce of kilmol 

 or refined carbon bisulphide has been measured. Forty strokes of the 

 pump forces thirteen cubic feet of air through the liquid used, thus 

 forming a vapor which displaces the air in the burrow and remains 

 for several hours. The squirrel promptly becomes unconscious and 

 dies in from twenty to thirty minutes to forty or forty-five minutes, 

 depending upon the liquid used and upon the tightness of the ground 

 surrounding the burrow. 



The squirrel destructor is usually effective against gophers. In 

 some cases, however, the gopher will plug his burrow and thus escape 



