1896 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
4U 
the fire. As many or more would come to, and he 
killed by, lanterns set in a pan of water on the surface 
of which oil had been poured. These would also 
prove too expensive. The destruction of insects by 
attracting them to lights, is not now considered, by 
entomologists, a practicable method. A thorough 
spraying of the trees upon which they feed, would, 
perhaps, destroy some ; but a much more effective 
method is to jar them (they drop like curculios) on to 
sheets or curculio catchers, and destroy them. The 
jarring would have to be done at night, of course, and 
the time of night might make some difference ; this 
could be easily determined by experiment. It is the 
most practicable method yet suggested for combating 
the beetles, where they attack trees. Yes, the kill¬ 
ing of the adult—the May beetles—would greatly de¬ 
crease the numbers of their young, the White grubs. 
Lye in Place of Lime for Bordeaux Mixture. 
Header, Benton Harbor, Mich .—Would concentrated lye take the 
place of lime in the Bordeaux Mixture for spraying ? 
I think not, for the following reasons: When a 
solution of concentrated lye (sodium hydroxide) is 
added to the copper sulphate solution, used in the 
Bordeaux Mixture, there is at once formed a light, 
fine precipitate which rises to the top of the mixture. 
This precipitated powder is copper hydrate, which 
would form the active fungicidal principle in the 
mixture. The acid copper sulphate alone is very in¬ 
jurious to foliage, as is also the alkaline concentrated 
lye solution. It would, therefore, be necessary to 
combine the two in just the right proportions to form 
a neutral mixture ; for, if not enough concentrated 
lye were added, there would be some copper sulphate 
solution left, and if the lye were added in excess, the 
surplus lye would be a very injurious ingredient. It 
would require much more careful manipulation to get 
the mixture neutral, than is now the case in making 
the Bordeaux Mixture. A slight variation of the 
amount of lye, either way, would leave a very in¬ 
jurious element in the mixture, whereas, in the Bor¬ 
deaux Mixture, an excess of lime leaves no injurious 
element, but adds a desirable quantity which may 
take up and render insoluble any arsenic which may 
come into solution from the addition of Paris-green. 
Let us look, for a moment, at the expense necessary 
to make a mixture with the lye. It would take about 
two pounds of the ordinary commercial concentrated 
lye to neutralize the usual six pounds of copper sul¬ 
phate used in 50 gallons of Bordeaux Mixture ; it 
takes from four to six pounds of lime. The two 
pounds of lye will cost, at least, 20 cents, while the 
required amount of lime can be bought for less than 
half as much. Thus the use of the lye would render 
the Bordeaux Mixture made with it, more expensive, 
more difficult to manipulate, and it would be very 
liable to injure the foliage severely ; even a chemi¬ 
cally neutral solution might prove injurious when 
experimented with. It is very doubtful whether any 
substance will be found that can fulfill all the re¬ 
quirements of the Bordeaux Mixture as cheaply and 
as satisfactorily as the lime does. 
The Troublesome Umbrella Ant. 
II. M. S., Monclova, Mexico .—How can I get rid of tbe Umbrella 
ant? These ants have various names, but are known by their 
way of carrying, each, a piece of leaf, as they go, thousands at a 
time, in procession to their homes. We have tried every means 
advised without any good result—dynamite, powder, turning a 
small stream into the nest, opening, pitfalls, bottles, poison, even 
digging huge holes in the attempt to destroy the nest, but all in 
vain. Last year, a large wild cherry tree, when in bloom, was 
stripped clean of leaves and blossoms. A field of barley had all 
the tender blades bitten off; cabbages, peas, beans, even the tops 
of young onions, suffered. If no remedy can be found, all chance 
of gardening is gone. There is only the one kind of ant which is 
so bad. I have seen in papers, that this kind did not do any 
damage to crops, but my experience and that of my neighbors, 
proves the opposite. 
Mr. Bates has recorded many interesting facts 
about this Umbrella ant, in his well-known narrative 
of “The Naturalist on the River Amazons.” He says 
that the insect is common in, and quite peculiar to, 
Tropical America, and from its habit of despoiling 
the most valuable cultivated trees of their foliage, it 
is a great scourge to the Brazilians. In some districts, 
it is so abundant that agriculture is almost impossible, 
and everywhere complaints are heard of the terrible 
pest. There are three different kinds of workers in 
the nests ; two of them have enormous heads, but 
most of the work is done by the more numerous 
smaller workers. The outworks of their nests con¬ 
sist of domes, about two feet in height and, some¬ 
times, 40 yards in circumference, composed of the 
subsoil brought up and cemented together. There 
are several openings in each dome, which lead into 
vast subterranean galleries extending in every direc¬ 
tion, and often for long distances. 
The little people are civil engineers as well as 
architects, for they have been known to excavate a 
tunnel under a South American river as wide as the 
Thames at London Bridge ; these triumphs of engin¬ 
eering skill having been executed long before such 
subfluvial thoroughfares were ever heard of by the 
human family. These ants are true harvesters, and 
have a very troublesome habit of plundering the 
stores of provisions in houses at night, especially the 
mandioca meal or farinha which is the bread of the 
poorer classes in Brazil. They come in vast hordes, 
and will carry off bushels of the grain, kernel by 
kernel, in a single night. 
But their name of Umbrella ant comes from the 
peculiar and interesting habit the workers have of 
climbing trees in multitudes, and each one deftly 
cutting out with its sharp jaws a nearly circular piece 
of a leaf which is at once carried to the nest, or let 
drop to the ground where another relay of workers 
take care of it. They are wont to carry each piece of 
a leaf in an upright position, thus imitating an 
umbrella to shield them from the tropical sun. As 
all take the same road to their nest, and walk in pro¬ 
cession, a very grotesque effect is produced ; the path 
they follow sometimes becomes, in a short time, 
smooth and bare, looking like the impression of a cart 
wheel through the herbage. Unfortunately, the 
creatures most often choose the cultivated trees, like 
the coffee and orange. 
What use is made of so many bits of leaves ? Mr. 
Bates believes that they used them to thatch the 
domes which cover the entrances to their subterra¬ 
nean dwellings, thereby protecting from the deluging 
rains, the young broods in the nests beneath. The 
heavily-laden workers, each carrying its piece of a 
leaf, troop up and cast their burdens on the hillock ; 
another relay of workers place the bits in position, 
and cover each with a layer of earthy particles 
brought up one by one from the soil beneath. How¬ 
ever, Mr. Belt, another, naturalist, since discovered 
that, in Nicaragua, the ants store the leaves until 
they decay, and that on the decaying mass, a fungus 
grows which forms food for the little creatures. “They 
are,” Mr. Belt adds, “in reality mushroom growers 
and eaters.” 
Having thus briefly discussed the interesting habits 
of these curious Umbrella ants, let us now turn to 
the economic side of the question, and see what has 
been or can be done to mitigate their ravages. Mr. 
Bates says : “ In the Botanic Gardens, at Para, an 
enterprising French gardener tried all he could think 
of to extirpate them. With this object, he made fires 
over some of the main entrances to their colonies, 
and blew the fumes of sulphur down the galleries by 
means of bellows. I saw the smoke issue from a great 
number of outlets, one of which was 70 yards distant 
from the place where the bellows were used, thus 
showing how extensively the underground galleries 
are ramified.” How successful this method proved, is 
not stated, but it may be inferred that it was not 
very effective. I can find no other account of any ex¬ 
periment against these insects. 
H. M. S. seems to have tried almost everything that 
promised any success, but with no satisfactory re¬ 
sults. The experience of the gardener given above, 
would indicate that the sulphur could not be thus 
effectively applied. The only other substance which 
I can suggest, is carbon bisulphide. This is very suc¬ 
cessfully used against our common ants in the United 
States. The fumes of the liquid, being heavier than 
air, would settle into the remotest galleries of the 
nest, and would be sure death to all animal life. Its 
application, however, may not be practicable, and 
may be too expensive. It would involve the closing 
tightly of all of the external openings possible ; and 
before closing each, a ball of cotton or other material 
well saturated with the bisulphide, is to be rolled 
into each opening. This is the most promising method 
I can suggest, and is worthy of an extensive and care¬ 
ful trial. The fumes are very poisonous, and are also 
expensive. The best bisulphide for the purpose can 
be obtained of Edward R. Taylor, Cleveland, O., at 10 
cents per pound in 50-pound cans. 
What is “ Land Plaster ” ? 
F. B. T., Visalia, Ky .—What is “land plaster”, and what its 
value, if any, as a fertilizer, and bug or insect repellaut? What 
is it worth compared with tine ground bone at $30, and muriate of 
potash at $50 per ton ? 
Ans. —“ Land plaster ” is a name given to sulphate 
of lime, which is a combination of lime and sulphur. 
It is a white powder, not caustic or burning to the 
touch as are some forms of lime. It is mined in large 
chunks, and ground to powder. By heating it so as 
to drive off the water, you will have plaster of Paris 
which, when mixed with water, forms a hard sub¬ 
stance, such as we see in some of the cheap images or 
castings. Grind these up, and you would have land 
plaster again. This substance has no fertilizing 
value that may fairly be compared with that of bone 
or muriate. Its value lies in the fact that it can bring 
about certain chemical effects. When placed near the 
carbonate of ammonia, the sulphur and the lime 
“break up” or separate. The sulphur unites with 
the ammonia to form sulphate of ammonia, while the 
lime forms a carbonate. The sulphate of ammonia 
will remain in the pile or stable unless washed away, 
while the carbonate would have passed away as a gas. 
The plaster changed the form of this valuable am¬ 
monia, and that is the chief object in using it. 
Packages for Peaches. 
H. B., Cherokee Nation. —I wish to crate some peaches next 
month, for shipment to Kansas City. How should I build the 
crates ? What is the proper size, etc. ? Can I make strips out of 
one-fourth-inch Yellow pine lathing ? 
Ans.— The parties to whom you intend to ship, are 
the ones to give you the information as to the most 
desirable packages, their size, etc. Crates vary in 
size and manner of construction in different markets. 
Usually they hold about three-fourths to one bushel. 
The strips you mention should be good for this pur¬ 
pose. 
To Kill Out a Foul Weed. 
L. M. M., Washington, Pa.—I have 20 acres of Timothy meadow 
that is good enough to please any one, except that it is polluted 
with yarrow. In some parts of the meadow, it is one-fourth yar¬ 
row. What shall I do with it ? 
Ans.— Two methods, only, are open, and it is diffi¬ 
cult to advise which of them should be adopted to rid 
the meadow of yarrow, because they are expensive, 
and will, probably, upset the plans of rotation and 
feeding now practiced. One is to plow the meadow 
and cultivate it with corn until the yarrow is 
destroyed; the other is to dig the yarrow by hand. 
Either of these methods would seem to be nearly as 
bad as to go on with the yarrow present. We are 
great believers in raising those crops which permit of 
inter culture, such as mangels, corn and the like, 
because it serves to rid the fields of weeds, and this 
method secures two to four times as much forage per 
acre for animals as is secured in ordinary practice. 
Six to seven tons of air dried material should be 
secured from corn, and not less than 30 tons of 
mangels per acre. These combined with some con¬ 
centrated food which contains a high per cent of 
albuminoids would make an appetizing, cheap and 
effective ration. 
Making Small Cheeses at Home. 
./. C., Victoriaville, P. Q .— How cau I make small cheeses for 
family use ? I have about three or four quarts of milk to spare a 
day. 
Ans.— J. C. does not fully realize the amount of 
milk required to make a pound of cheese. A quart of 
average milk contains about two ounces of solids ap¬ 
plicable to the manufacture of cheese ; that amount 
of solids will assimilate about one-half its weight in 
moisture. From this, it will be seen that it would 
require about five quarts of milk to make a pound of 
green cheese. It has not been found practicable to 
make a cheese weighing very much less than 10 
pounds, which, on that basis, would require about 50 
quarts of milk. Manufacturing that quantity of milk, 
would require considerable care in maintaining an 
equable temperature to make a palatable cheese. 
GKO. A. SMITH. 
About the Angel Pear. 
W. J. B., Benton, Md .— Are the Angel and Petite Marguerite 
pears one and the same ? 
Ans.— The Angel pear is said to have originated on 
the farm of a Mr. Angel, near Ghent, N. Y., as a seed¬ 
ling, in a field that is now his meadow. The fruit is 
large and handsome, quite early in season, and sells 
well, but is of poor quality. Petite Marguerite, origi¬ 
nated at Angers, France. The fruit is of medium size 
and good quality, and ripens about three or four 
weeks later than the Angel and other very early pears. 
H. E. V. D. 
The Law of Irrigation. 
S. B., Baldwinsville, N. Y. —I rent a farm for a term of years. A 
brook rising in another man’s woodland, runs through it. The 
owner of my farm says that I have no right to use the water for 
irrigation, according to State laws, although no one else objects. 
Is he right ? 
Ans.— The common law provides that one may use 
water from a stream running through his land for 
ordinary purposes, or he may divert it for driving 
machinery, provided the water so used is returned to 
the stream from which it came before it leaves his 
land. Technically speaking, you would not have a 
right to use the water for irrigation, since you cannot 
return it to the stream from which it came, provided 
it in any way injured those who made use of the 
stream below, or provided anyone below you objected 
to such use of the water. If no objections were made, 
or better still, if you got the consent of those on the 
stream below to use the water for short periods for 
irrigation, the man who owns the farm which you 
rent could, certainly, not object to your making use 
of the stream to promote the growth of plants, thereby 
benefiting both of you. In the western semi-arid belt, 
water is taken out of the rivers to such an extent that, 
for 100 miles from where it is taken, the river may 
dwindle into an insignificant stream, furnishing water 
only for stock purposes. I do not know how this is 
managed, but I presume “ might makes right,” and 
those in the upland and, frequently, in another State, 
drain the rivers for irrigating purposes, which would 
seem to imply that the unwritten law there is, “ first 
come, first served,” which in many cases, of course, 
is a bad unwritten law. I. p. kobkrts. 
