The daily telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1901-1926, 1915-08-14
To Get Rid of the Pests they
Must Be Attacked in fheir
Breeding Places:
WASHINGTON, Aug.

WASHINGTON, Aug. 14.Fer-
sons whose houses. net animals. pr
live stock are infested with feas are
warned In new publication OF the
United States department ofagrteul-
ture. Bulletin No. 243. that It is al
most hopeless to get rid of the pest
If no attention is paid to the breed
ing places of the insects: It is, OF
course. important to destroy the
adult deas but this should be accom-
panied by thorough cleaning out Of
all places in which their eggs may be
laid. Since it takes from two weeks
TO many months for the eggs Of meas
to develop adults there is aiWays can
ger Of q reinfestation unless the
breeding places are thoroughly des-
troYed.
It is a well known fact that GER
tain kinds OF feas are Responsible TOT
the spread of the bubonic plague and
this alone would make their destruc-
ton a universal duty. Tney are,
however, responsible for other DIS
eases as well as the plague, and en-
|tirely apart from their share IN
s a., contagion they are great
nuisance to human beings, and may
annoy live stock to such an extent
that they seriously iniure the health
fof the animal. The hea can exist
practically everywhere tnat man ne. can ;
and &c the conditions are psrmifteq
10 be favorable it will multiply with
great rapidity.
Most Common Varieties.
OF the approximately 400 species
of aeas known to exist the human
Ace tlna dog flea, the rat nea-which
carries the plagueand the suck
tight flea are the varieties Wnlsn
most commonly affect human peinSs
and domestic animals The suckIlgnt
flea differs from the others n tnas
when 1T has once attached itself 70
host &c remains with its mouth parts
Embedded in the flesh.
sChickens suffer In particular xrom
this pest and for this reason 1t IS
sometimes called the chicken flea II
is frequently seen in dense masses
also on the ears Of dogs ana cats
II is dificu1t to loosen 1t from ies
hold and its destruction therefore,
presents some difficulties. Fairy
good results are obtained from the
local application of kerosene and lara
in the proportions Of one part Kero-
sene and three parts lard. buff used
to freely this may injure poultry.
In the case Of other species the IN
sects hon about much more freely and
may or may not therefore, be founQ
at any given time on their hosts
When dogs or cats, however, are
found to b suffering, bath In g
three per cent solution of creolin Will
probably be found to be enectiye-
sufaciently accurate method Of max
ing such solution is 10 add 1our
Ia blespoonfuls OF creolin to each gal
Ion Of water. Warm water should
be used and the animal placed IN g
tub with the solution In II. a stin
brush should then be used to worK
the solution into the HAIR, Particular
care being taken to wet the fas On
the head of the animal. The bath
should last five or ten minutes, after
which the creo1in should be rinseo
of and the animal washed with warm
water aud soap. This treatment e
desirable for cats and VIII preveA .
the skin of the most delicate animal
from being burned. Finely pulvertzed
moth balls worked into the fur OF the
cat are also useful. The napth a1ene
in the moth balls drives the Geas out
OF the hair They emerge in astpde-
fed condition and can then easily be
killed. Insect powder, sometimes
called pyrethrum, buhacn, or Das1na-
tan Insect powder, may be used IN
the same way. Fresh, unadulteFatea
pyrethrum is necessary to secure sat-
isfactory results.
It has already been said. however.
that it is useless to attack the adult
fiea If no attention is paid 10 its
breeding, but in the case of the nu-
man flea most of the eggs are prod
ably deposited while the insects are.
i'm their nests somewhere In the ytcini-
ty- In houses the cracks of floors or
under mating or carpets are favor
lite places. The conditions under
buildings are often favorable for the
breeding. For this reason it Is de-
lsirable that dwellings, stables. and
sheds should be SO arranged that cats
dogs, chickens, and other animals that
|harbor the pests can not go beneath
them to sleep. Dirt floors In chicken
houses and sheds. furnish more raw
Iorable conditions than wooden foors,