The National tribune., 1899-09-07
T0ADS AND BATS.
Their Usefulness In the House Demonstrated by EIper,
ment.
Ne1D York Herald.

| As a result of experiments with toads
and bats, it has been demonstrated that a
house, or even community, can be rid
OF various troublesome insects, including
flies and musketoes. These experiments
were made by Prof Clinton F. Hodge, of
GiaTk University, Worcester, Mass. Prof.
| hodges first experiment was with the
| toad. constructed a small pen In nv
garden" he said, and in it, in a nan of
water, installed male and female toad.
TO attract food for them placed within
the Inciosure bits OF meat and bone The
| results were as satisfactory as thev were
unexpected. The toads spent most of the
time sitting within reaching distance of
| the bait, and killing the flies attracted nv
It: -! watched one toad snap up So house
flies in less than 10 minutes.
OEe day gathered quantity of rose
Bugs IN tin box, and began to feed the
bugs to toad. At first / did not count.
but, finding his appetite so good, started
to count. When I had counted over so
bugs. and the toad showed no signs of
wishing to conclude his meal, picked him
up. Previous 10 my beginning to count
he had taken anywhere from 10 to 20 bI,ps'
i found the toad equally greedy for rose
beetles, canker worms, ants, caterpiIlars.
moths, June bugs, weevils snails. and
many other insects. So, too, in a house.
room may be cleared of cockroaches by
leaving toad in it over night.
"A single toad may destroy over .. 900
worms during the months of May, June,
and July, and one of these harmless crea-
lures may well do a gardener service to
the amount OF S19.SS, each season, and vet
ne can raise $4,000 worth of toads at an
expense OF not more than 20 cents.
Farmers in England buy them. nav.
ing as high as S24 per 100, for use in their
fioWer-bedS and gardens. For household
purposes a small number of toads could
be given homes in an aquarium At
n 10 10 l. IL
bugs, while in the day they could kin
files l have built sort of cage of wire
screen, foot wide and two feet long. the
top of which is kept open. 1t is only neces-
sary to put in two or three toads, provide
them with shelters, dish of water in one
corner, and then keep it supplied with bits
of raw meat and any other refuse matter
calculated to attract flies"
In speaking of the bat, Prof Hodges
said: I'VE have no animal more interest
ing, and probably none more valuable,
abused than the bat. They are easily
tanned. absolutely harmless when gently
handled, and make pets as funny as tinv
monkeys. AS deStroyers of many of our
most pestiferous night-fiying insects. like
musketoes, the bat is almost our sole de-
pendenee, and, as he is known to hunt
insects afoot, as well as on the wing, he is
also of some value for larvae that do not
fly,
My attention was turned to the bat
through the Goblin moth, the insect to
blame for most worm-eaten apples In an
orchard near my home l found nine of the
grubs of this insect in minute. CHANGING
to &c into another orchard. hardly a mile
away. l found only four of the grubs in an
hours search. There is an old barn near
by, III which live colony of between rs
and 100 bats; The owner informed me
that his apples were always free from
worms"
Hoods Sarsaparilla is the specific remedy for