I r4 Field- Mice. 



bark from trees, when the mischief has really been done by meadow- 

 mice." 



In concluding this short paper, it will be proper to mention some of 

 the methods that have been adopted for the destruction of these pests. 

 Dig in the earth, at the beginning of cold weather, short trenches, four 

 feet wide at the bottom, and three feet wide at the top, and about four 

 feet deep ; the ends inclined at the same angle as the sides. The earth- 

 walls of these trenches, after becoming frozen, are impassable to mice 

 that have fallen in, as they will in great numbers. I am informed by 

 a Scotch gardener, that he has killed upwards of 7iine thousmid in one 

 winter in this manner. Various poisonous preparations have been used, 

 some very effectively. A few of the best are as follows : Mix one 

 ounce of finely-powdered arsenic and one ounce of lard into a stiff dough 

 with meal or flour; make into pills, and scatter them about the haunts of 

 the rats and mice. Mix one ounce of flour, two ounces of lard, and half 

 a drachm of phosphorus, made also into pills ; or one ounce of flour, two 

 ounces of powdered cheese-crumbs, and half a drachm of phosphorus. An 

 effective poison is made of the following : Two ounces of finely-powdered 

 arsenic, two ounces of lard, ten drops of oil of rhodium, mixed with flour 

 or meal into thick dough, and . pills of it scattered about the orchards and 

 nurseries. 



As " prevention is better than cure," so it is better to avoid the chance 

 of having mice in gardens and nurseries than to kill them after they have 

 got there. Before the snow falls then, all rubbish, such as brushwood, 

 straw, weeds, and other litter, should be raked up and burned ; for these 

 furnish comfortable homes for these pests. Have no piles of strawy ma- 

 nure about ; and, above all, take off all piles of stones that may have accu- 

 mulated. It is better to have them scattered over the surface of the ground 

 than to have them offering a safe asylum for hordes of vermin. In the 

 summer, spare all harmless snakes and owls, for their chief food is of mice 

 and insects; and a few of these benefactors will keep clean a large tract of 

 land. E. A, Sanntels. 



