560 
Insects  Destructive  to  Books. 
J  Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
|  December,  1910. 
institution  with  which  I  was  officially  connected  for  a  number  of 
years,  a  lot  of  mosquito  eggs  were  received  from  Cuba.  These  eggs 
had  been  attached  to  a  piece  of  rough  blotting  paper,  and  sent  to 
us  through  the  mails.  Upon  receiving  them,  thinking  that  they 
had  been  ruined  by  the  rough  handling  and  pressure  that  they  must 
have  received  in  transit,  the  blotting  paper  was  thrown  aside  and 
allowed  to  lay  exposed  to  the  dust  of  the  atmosphere  and  the  rays 
of  the  sun  for  many  months.  One  day,  in  a  spirit  of  fun,  some  one 
threw  the  blotting  paper  into  some  water,  and,  to  the  surprise  of  all, 
in  a  very  short  time,  the  larvae  were  swimming  around  as  though 
nothing  had  ever  happened  to  them. 
All  plants,  vegetables,  trees,  etc.,  have  certain  combinations  of 
chemical  elements  which  are  only  found  in  them,  as  is  known  from 
chemical  analyses  which  have  been  made  of  material  from  them, 
and  each  of  these  have  certain  forms  of  life  which  live  upon  them, 
and  whenever  any  of  these  trees,  etc.,  are  used  in  the  manufacture 
of  paper  and  preparation  of  leathers,  eggs  of  the  different  species 
are  most  likely  to  be  found  incorporated  in  the  material ;  hyber- 
nating,  as  it  were,  until  the  proper  conditions  through  heat  or 
dampness  come  about,  giving  life  to  the  germ  within,  and  in  a  very 
short  time  the  little  worm  is  enjoying  life,  although  being  evoluted 
perhaps,  later  than  nature  intended  it  to  be. 
Again,  wandering  insects  come  into  the  library,  and  their  instinct 
tells  them  what  books  contain  the  particular  food  or  medicine  for 
which  they  are  seeking.  These  little  insects  pass  through  their  various 
states  of  evolution,  with  long  periods  of  life,  which  are  unknown  to 
the  finite  mind  of  man  as  to  the  exactness  of  the  length  of  their  lives, 
and  are  always  evoluting  up  to  a  point  of  superior  consciousness. 
We  must  give  credit  to  the  entomologists  for  their  researches  as 
to  the  laying  of  the  eggs  of  the  winged  insects,  that  in  time,  by 
the  active  energies  of  the  physical  universe,  produce  life  which  be- 
comes expressive,  by  a  process  of  incubation  which  has  been  very 
little  considered.  These  various  illustrations  are  exhibited  to  ex- 
press the  nature  and  character  of  that  which  has  been  infectious  to 
the  libraries  of  the  world.  While  many  of  them  will  seek  for  the 
paste,  it  is  not  always  that  which  attracts  them.  They  are  also 
attracted  by  the  mineral  and  vegetable  substances  found  in  books. 
Disease  Carriers. — Just  as  diseases  are  carried  by  flies,  the 
seeds  of  plants  by  birds  and  the  winds,  so  are  contagious  diseases 
carried  to  new  locations  by  books  and  papers.    Flies  coming  from 
