cotton-seed, corn-meal, oatmeal, rolled wheat, and other prepared 
cereals. They sometimes live, it is said, in the nests of bumble¬ 
bees, and in the hives of the honey-bee. 
The Mediterranean flour-moth is common and widely distributed 
on both sides of the world. It was first detected in Illinois in 1894. 
The economic importance of this insect is shown by a state¬ 
ment made by Dr. F. H. Chittenden, of the United States Depart¬ 
ment of Agriculture, in a recent circular of the Bureau of En¬ 
tomology on this pest (No. 112, issued March 7, 1910), in which he 
says that ‘this flour moth is attracting more attention than any 
insect that ever infested mills or other buildings where cereals are 
stored; indeed, it is almost the sole topic of complaint of millers 
at the present writing, correspondence in regard to weevils and 
flour beetles, which was at one time heavy, having fallen off very 
noticeably. * * * 
“As to the losses caused directly and indirectly by this insect, 
it has been difficult,” he adds, “to obtain estimates, the lowest 
being between $100 and $200 to a mill of 1,000 barrels capacity. 
The average loss due to closing down the mill and cost of treat¬ 
ment seems to be not far from $500 for each fumigation, ‘to say 
nothing of the loss to business,' according to one Kansas milling 
firm. An estimate of $1,000 for two fumigations can not be far 
from right." * * * Thus*, cleanliness in and about the mill, 
and care in examining returned bags and other materials entering 
it, will go far towards preventing or diminishing trouble from this 
moth. 
TREATMENT 
Where a mill is already infested, all flour or other mill products 
containing the insect should be promptly burned, and all spouts, 
elevator legs, other parts of machinery and other equipment, as 
also the walls, ceiling, and especially the corners in every part of 
the building, should be thoroly cleaned. Such thoro cleaning must 
be followed by fumigation with hydrocyanic acid gas, or by the 
use of artificial heat, both of which operations are described farther 
on in this paper under the head of Measures of Prevention and 
Remedy. 
The Indian Meal Moth 
(Plodia interpunctella HubnJ 
With habits somewhat like those of the Mediterranean flour- 
moth, but occurring usually on the grain itself or else in meal, the 
caterpillar of this insect does most of its injury by spinning silk 
over whatever food it chances to be feeding on. It may construct 
a silken tube to live in, or simply spin its web in every direction. 
Bags of grain may thus become completely covered with closely 
matted silk, which it is practically impossible to remove, so that 
