The Pascagoula democrat-star. (Pascagoula, Miss.) 1878-1920, 1886-04-16
The Southern Bed-Bug.

N. o. States.
At first blush great many per-
Sous are liable TO imagine that
elmer lectuldriaS is delicate piece
OF blic-a-brac or some choice article
of virtu, but it is our painful duty
to inform them that 1t is nothing of
the kind. The elmer lectuIariNs is
nothing more or less than an ener-
getic little insect which puts up at
the best hotels and is known as tue
bedbug Those little insects be-
come very familiar on a very short
acquaintance, and in consequence
are a great source OF annoy ance TO
travellers, and especially TO commer-
cial drnmmerS, for whom they en-
tertain the highest regard. Not long
ago a drummer stopped at hotel
in Florida, and the bugs attacked
him so vIciouSly that he was forced
TO seek quarters elsewhere in order
to escape them. His manly form
had uOurished Cimexes in every
large hotel in the country, but ney-
er before had he encountered bug
able to penetrate his general tough
ness, aud the idea of being put to
flight by the insignificant Florida
insect, after he had successfully
defied the teeth OF the Texas aud
California product, humlliated him
to that extent that he advised his
brother drummers to keep away
from the hotel, saying that the bugs
were armed with beak like
swordish aud were murderous in
their instincts. Tue proprietor of
the Florida hostlery heard of the
drummer's talk and straightway
brought suit for libel, aud iu his
bill OF complaint he averred that
his bugs were as well behaved as
any hotel bugs to be found i ! the
country, aud that he had always
made it u pOiUt not to allow any of
them to be disorderly or to demand
more from guest than was Gus.
tomary. He also said that wheii Il
man buys Il hotel the bugs always
go with it, and that every new pro-
prietOr makes it a rule to inquire
about the character of the Gugsj
aud TO get Il recommendation as to
their Sobnety and politeness trom
their former master.
The suit against the drummer
has resulted in all the drummers of
the North coming to his assistance,
and now they are assalliug tue
character of all the bed bugs in tue
South, and the Republican news
papers have taken the matter up
aud are trying to make political
capital ont OF it.
Tue South, however, does not
care for these malicious attacks.
1t has be satisfaction of knowing
that there is not bed-bug south
of the Ohio river halt so vicious,
blOod.thirsty aud cOwardly as tue
little b0b-tailed, round bellied fly
that inhabts The hotels of the North
during the summer time. These
flies steal into guests room about
daylight in the morning and bite
bin like bulldog, aud compel liim
10 clutch boot in one hand aud
beat them off while he pnlls on his
breeches with the other. Do the
proprietors of hotels in Cleveland,
OHIO, for instance, employ bellboys
to wake guests in time to catch the
early morning trains Not bit of
it. The flies are used for that pur-
pose, aud thus are honest and iu-
dustlious lads cheated out of em.
ployment and the means of earning
their bread. Aside from this, the
hotel. keepers stand in with the flies;
to use common expression, aud
when tfe guests sit down to break.
fast and dinner, the flies come in
aud bite their ears and necks and
drive them from a halt finished meal
The Northern hotel profits by the
presence of the fly, aud the insects
are fed aud given the best rooms in
the house.
The Cleveland fy, especially, is
very wicked. 1t has fangs like a
beside its bloody deeds
those of the Southern elmer lectHlU-
riWS, alias bed bug, pale into utter
guificauce.