14 The Philippine Journal of Science 1913 



FUMIGATION 



A compartment for fumigation (Plate III, fig. 2), 3.85 meters 

 in length, 2.85 meters in width, 2,95 meters in height, con- 

 taining 32.4 cubic meters, and suitable for 1,400 kilograms of 

 leaf tobacco, can be constructed for less than 200 pesos. It 

 should be lined with zinc, and have 3 shelves on each side, 1 

 meter wide and covered with poultry netting on which to lay the 

 leaf tobacco. Where carbon bisulphide is to be used, the top shelf 

 should be provided, at either end, with a small piece of board on 

 which to set the dishes that contain the fumigant. The door 

 should have 3 flanges padded with rubber packing, so that when it 

 closes the compartment is absolutely tight. Such a compartment 

 could be used either for the carbon bisulphide or the cyanide 

 treatment. 



The properties and characteristics of the chemicals used in 

 fumigation should be thoroughly understood by the operator so 

 that necessary precautions may be taken. Aside from this, fu- 

 migation is very simple. Tobacco should be treated in the leaf, 

 and after being made into cigars should be placed immediately 

 in the screened drying and selecting room. It is preferable to 

 treat the leaf tobacco, as it is then loose and can be handled to 

 better advantage. Furthermore, if cigars be allowed to stand 

 after being made and fumigated before shipment, the beetles 

 that were developing in them would be killed in the cigar and 

 make the latter undesirable. 



CARBON BISULPHIDE 



Carbon bisulphide (CSg) is a colorless, volatile liquid, having 

 a specific gravity of 1.29 at 0°C., and is malodorous when mixed 

 with air. It evaporates rapidly, and is extremely inflammable. 

 As the vapor is heavier than air, carbon bisulphide must be 

 placed at the top of the fumigating compartment. The gas is 

 poisonous and should not be inhaled by the operator. Where 

 one has a compartment especially prepared for fumigating, 

 there need be no danger to the person doing the work. 



Carbon bisulphide can be purchased in Germany or in the 

 United States at a comparatively low figure. Its wholesale price 

 delivered in Manila is 92 centavos per kilogram. Locally it 

 retails for about 2.50 to 2.86 pesos per kilogram. It is put 

 up in iron drums containing from 0.5 to 20 kilograms. Being 



