570 INSECTS AT HOME. 



rated with red wafers, like the spots on a toy-house. Tht 

 udour of the room was, however, almost asphyxiatiii<^, and the 

 air was so foul that some pure water which I had brought with 

 me was covered with scum in a few minutes. On examining 

 the walls a little jnore closely, I found that the imagined red 

 wafers were nothing but Bugs, each of which had been smashed 

 by a blow from the broad-headed shoemaker's hammer. Not 

 one of the family, however, was in the least aware that the 

 atmosphere within the room was more offensive than that 

 without it, and none of them suffered any discomfort from the 

 insects with which their house swarmed. 



It is probable that the Bug does not absolutely require human 

 blood, which is but a luxury to it. In its original condition it 

 is said to live upon the juices of various trees, and to be able to 

 procure nourishment from them even when the timber lias 

 been dried and made into furniture. Many entomologists 

 believe that the first Bugs which were introduced into this 

 country came over with the large cargoes of American timber 

 that were used in rebuilding those parts of London which had 

 been destroyed by the great fire of 166G. Some timbers, how- 

 ever, such as walnut, mahogany, oak, or cedar, are said not to 

 afford them any nourishment. 



The question of extirpating these insects is really an im- 

 portant one. Cleanliness and the increasing use of metal bed- 

 steads have done much in lessening their numbers, but, despite 

 all precautions, no house and no room is really safe from them. 

 A single female may be brought to the house in the laundress' 

 basket, find her way to some crevice, lay her eggs, and so 

 found a large colony before their presence is fairly discovered. 

 Various means of ridding the place of them have been tried, 

 such as taking the furniture to pieces and painting all the 

 joints with turpentine. Such means are effectual enough as 

 far as the turpentine can reach, but no farther ; and when the 

 insects have taken up their residence in chinks of the wall, 

 they cannot be subjected to turpentine or any other liquid. 



It is evident that, in such a case, the insects can only be 

 touched by vapour, and the question arises what vapour to 

 employ. That of sulphur has been used with success, as has 

 that of one or two other suffocating substances. But in any of 

 these cases, the vapour must be so thick that no human being 



