HOUSE ANTS. 7 
the legs of furniture and tie firmly. Corrosive sublimate is a poison; 
so be careful. ace : 
Sprays.—The ordinary kerosene-pyrethrum sprays commonly on 
the market are excellent for killing ants actually hit by the spray. 
Sometimes spraying will keep ants away, but it is seldom that sprays 
can be depended on to kill a colony. 
Poisoned baits.—Often resort must be had to poisoned baits, par- 
ticularly when other methods fail. First remove, as far as possible, 
all foods from the places to which the ants have been coming and 
substitute a saucer or other dish containing a sponge kept moist by 
the poisoned sirup. The worker ants will feed upon the sirup, carry 
it back to the nest, and feed it to the queens and the young, and so 
poison the colony. Sometimes the poison container can be placed 
along the line of march followed by the ants rather than about the 
sink, pantry, or kitchen cabinet. Care should be used to keep children 
and pets away from these bants. 
Another method of exposing baits is to use pill boxes cut as shown 
in figure 5. When the bait is prepared, pour it over strips of blotting 
paper, being careful to add only what will be absorbed easily. Place 
FIGURE 5.—Pill box for holding poisoned bait: A, Box with sides cut and cover removed; B, box ready 
for use 
some of these poisoned strips, previously cut to fit the box, in the pill 
box, the interior of which has been paraffined, and put on the cover. 
When the boxes are ready to use, merely raise the covers enough to 
allow the ants room to enter. Tin boxes or other containers can be used 
instead of pill boxes. 
The following formulas for poisoned baits have given good results, 
but no one formula can be relied on to destroy all kinds of ants under 
all conditions: < 
Formula 1.—Dissolve 4 ounces of sugar in 1 quart of water and stir in one-half 
ounce of tartar emetic. 
Formula 2.—Dissolve one-half pound of sugar in 1 pint of ho} water and add 
one-seventh ounce (62.5 grains) of sodium arsenate; bring to a slow boil and strain. 
Formula 3.—Recommended particularly for the Argentine ant: (1) Mix 9 
pounds of granulated sugar, 6 grams of crystallized tartaric acid, and 8.4 grams 
of benzoate of soda in 9 pints of water; boil the mixture slowly for 30 minutes and 
allow it to cool. (2) Dissolve 15 grams of sodium arsenite (C. P.) in one-half 
pint of hot water and allow to cool. Add (2) to (1) and stir well, then add 1% 
pounds of strained honey and mix thoroughly. 
Formula 4.—F¥or ants that will not eat sweets but prefer grease and meat: 
Work small quantities of tartar emetic into grease or pieces of bacon rind. 
Formula 5.—For control of large black carpenter ants: Mix 1 teaspoonful of 
paris green with one-half pound of chopped meat or hamburg steak. Cook the 
meat in a frying pan sufficiently to brown it slightly to delay decay. Granulate or 
