The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1915-08-18
REMEDIES FOR PLEAS.
Permanently to Get Rid of the Pests They Must Be Att tackled In Their Bfeed-
 ina Places.

Persons whose houses, pet anil a1aals, or live stock are infested with heas are warned in q new publication Of the United States Department of AgricuIture Bulletin No. 248, that 1t is almost hopeless to get rid of.the pest if no Attention is paid to the breeding places of the insects. It is, Of course, important to destroy the adult dAas but this should be accom- panied by a 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 deas to develop to adults there is always dangerkof Q reinfestation ua- less the breeding places are thor oughly destroyed.
 It is well known fact that cer- tain kinds of heas are responsible for the spread of the bubon1cs plague and this alone would make their de- structfon a universal duty. They are, however. responsible for other di+ seases as we'll as the plague, and en- tireiy apart from their share in spreading contagions they are a great nuisance ito human beings, and may annoy live stock to such an extent that they seriously inJure the health of the animal The flea can exist practically everywhere that man can, and if the conditions are permitted d to be favorable it will multiply with great rapfdity.
 Of tie approximately 400 species of feas known to exist the human flea, the dog hea,tne cat heas the rat dea-which carries the plague-a1d the sticktIght flea are the varieties which most commonly affect human beings and domestic animals The sficktight flea differs from the others in that when 1t has once attached d itself to a host its remains with its mouth parts imnnoyab1y imbedded in the flesh. Chickens suffer in partic- ular from this pest and for this req son it is- sometimes called the chicken flea It is frequently seen in dense masses also on the ears of dogs and cats It is difficult to loosen it from it's hold 4and it's destruction there fore presents some difficulties. Fairly good results are obtained from the local appl5cafion-o kerosene and lard in the proportions of one part Ixero- sere and three parts lard, but if used too freely this may injure poultry.
 I'm the case of other species the insects hop about much more freely and may or may not, therefore, be found at any given time on their hosts. When dogs or cats, however, are found to be suffering a bath in a per cent. solution of creoIin will probably be found to be effective. A sufficiently accurate method of ma-k- ing such a solution is to add four tabIespoonfu1s of creo1in to each gallon of water. Warm water should be used and the animal placed in a tub with the solution in it. "A stiff brush should then be used to work the solution into the hair, particular care being taken to wet the heas on fhe head of the animaIA The bath should last five or 0 minutes, after which the creolin should be rinsed off fand the animal washed with warm water and soap. This treatment is desirable for cats and will prevent the skin of the most delicate animal from being burned, Finely puIver- ized moth balls worked into the fur of 4tI1e cat are also useful. The naehthaIene in the moth balls drives tIee heas out of the hair. They en1&rge in a stupefed condition and can then easily be killed. Insect powder, sometimes called pyrethrum, buhach, or Da1matfan insect powder, may be used in the same way. Fresh. unadulterated pyrethrurn is necessary to secure satisfactory results.
 aas already been said, however, that it is useless to attack the adult det if no attention is paid to it's breeding places. The flea may lay its eggs upon the host animal, but in the case of the human flea most of the eggs are probably deposited while the insects are in their nests EomeWnere m the V1clnaLy- In houses the cracks of floors or under mating or carpets are faNorite places The conditions under buildings are often fa5brable for breeding For this req son 1t is desirable that dwellings, stables. and sheds should be so ar- radged that cats. dogs; chickens, and other animals that narbor ~the pests cal not go beneath them to sleep. Dift doors in chicken houses and mFl4@dM fr7wmfe1a more favorable com