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A  POISON  FOR  RATS. 
A  POISON  FOR  RATS. 
According  to  the  French  *  Moniteur '  there  are  in  France  up- 
wards of  two  thousand  millions  of  rats  and  other  rodents.  Sup- 
posing each  of  these  little  quadrupeds  to  commit  the  damage  of 
only  one  centime  per  annum,  this  loss  would  amount  in  the 
aggregate  to  twenty  millions  of  francs  annually.  Hence  it  is 
most  desirable  to  find  some  means  of  destroying  this  vermin  in 
large  numbers  as  expeditiously  as  possible.  Nux-vomica,  arsenic, 
phosphorus,  and  traps  have  been  successively  tried,  but  with  no 
very  decided  success,  and  certainly  not  equal  to  the  rate  of  in- 
crease of  these  prolific  creatures.  Recent  experiments,  however, 
show  that  squills  {Scilla  maritima),  the  bulb  of  which  is  much 
used  in  medicine,  is  not  only  a  powerful  poison  for  rodents,  but 
also  one  they  are  very  fond  of.  The  way  of  preparing  it  for  the 
desired  purpose  is  as  follows  : — One  of  the  bulbs  is  cut  into 
slices,  hashed  and  bruised,  then  done  in  the  pan  with  fat,  which 
is  afterwards  strained  through  a  cloth  and  poured  into  broken 
plates  and  saucers  to  be  placed  in  the  cellars  and  other  places 
infested  with  rats,  mice,  etc.  To  prevent  dogs  and  poultry  from 
eating  of  this  poisonous  compound  in  stables,  pigeon-houses,  or 
farmyards,  it  may  be  put  into  a  wooden  box,  about  a  foot  and  a 
half  long,  and  having  a  hole  at  each  end.  The  rat  gets  in  at 
one  end  and  goes  out  at  the  other,  after  partaking  of  the  noxious 
food,  which  soon  kills  it.  Squills  may  also  be  reduced  to  powder 
for  the  same  purpose  by  bruising  them  in  a  mortar  to  a  pulp, 
which  is  afterwards  incorporated  with  as  much  flour  as  it  will 
hold.  This  paste  is  then  rolled  out,  as  they  do  for  a  pudding, 
then  cut  into  shreds,  which  are  left  to  dry  on  hurdles  or  on 
sheets  of  pasteboard,  and  are  afterwards  pounded  in  a  mortar. 
The  powder  thus  obtained  will  keep  for  years,  and  may  be  put 
into  boxes  or  barrels.  If  manufactured  on  a  large  scale,  it  may 
become  a  profitable  article  of  exportation.  In  Algeria  squills 
cost  nothing,  the  country  being  absolutely  overrun  with  them. — 
Lond.  Pharin.  Journ,^  Nov.,  from  Times, 
