The Portland daily press., 1899-07-04

an Immature specimen Of the Prionidus
cristatus, aud thus exoneratine it In spite
ance.
All Of the attempts Of the local physi-
clans to catch this sAnguinary and evasiye
pestlhave failed. So elusiveo OF the most
determined efforts has 1t hesn that IN lien
OF more appropriate and pronounceable
name IL has been popularly dubbed the
DOraeyfoutz bug. This title Ia given in
honor OF notorious murderer who some
tning more than n year ago wantonly
killed q couple Of aged residents of the Dis
trict Of Columbia. He had no difficulty
In eluding the efforts made to find him BY
the local police, ard is supposed by some
70 be hiding at present in Washington.
Meanwhile news has reached the Smith
sonian Institution and the Agricultural
Denartment that a pest of a like nature
has been doing damage In Maryland,
Virginia and PennsyIvaniR case Of
bug bite similar TO those which have oc-
CURED in Washington has been reported
from Wilmington, Del, and the creatur
would seem to be moving north on New
York and New England. Outside Of
Washington 1t has been called the kissing
bug.
DIR. William II. Ashmead, the eutomol-
ogist OF the Smithsonian tInstitutionEand
National Museum, said in an interview
that the probable cause for the unusual
prevalence of the Melanolestes picipes
this year was the continued cold OF the
past winter. This, he thinks, served to
keep the eggs Of the insect from Matching
out early in the spring and being subse-
quently frozen by the late cold snaps.
fhe principal food Of the Melanolestes is
the caterpillar. This creature, as Is well
known, has appeared in unusually large
numbers during the present season. DIR.
Ashmead has had some experience with
the Melanolestes picipes, having been
bitten by one. The symptoms which he
describes are the same as those reported
from the Emergency and other hospitals
at which the bug bite has been treated.
The Melanolestes, said he. ''belongs,
along with a great many other similar
tribes of bugs. to the species Hemiptera-
the Greek for half wing--one-half Of the
wings Of the insect being Inembraneous
and one-half ealcareous. The family
name for them is Reduviidae. Normally
they feed ON the juices of plants or ON the
blood and juices of other insects / have
seen one OF the species suck the body Of
caterpillar as dry OF its juices as bone.
The creatures are also fond Of warm
blo0ded animals
1.-THE Melanoiestes is found mostly in
the East and he differs from his cousins
in the West and Southwest in being less
fierce. Down In Arizona and Texas these
creatures are known as the great big
bsdbug, and frequent complaints come to
the Smithsonian from the parts of the
country infested with sthem. They have
been known down there TO attack hem
neries and to do great damage among the
fowls by biting and poisoning them.
Ii will be perfectly useless to attempt
to fight the insect, as on account of It's
habit OF travelling and working at night
1t has mankind At q peculiar disadvant-
age. Nature has method of keeping
down the members OF this species by pro-
viding millions Of parasites which prey
on its eggs. New Jersey is the native
home of two families OF this creature.
the Picipes melsnclestes and the Picipes
abdominalis. /"