Evening star., 1919-03-02

~ sands OF billions have made
their appearance in certain
parts Of the United States.
Immense quantities of food and many
gardens and orchards are being de.
have had to be vacated as a result Of
tho invasion of these destructive
pests.
Perhaps the biggest problem that
oonfronts the people of certain nor-
tions of Texas. Arkansas. Louisiana,
Mississippi Tennessee. Alabama,
Georgia. Florida and North and South
Carolina is the means of not only get
ting rid of this epidemic. but prevent
ing II from spi eading TO all OF The
states.
After an exhaustive study Earnest
r. Barber. a government expert. has
discovered that this particular specie
of ant made It's first appearance In
this country at New Orleans several
years ago. arriving there on coffee
laden vessels from ports in Brazil.
Since then they have been spreading
rapidly in all directions from that
city. The plague has now assumed
almost southwide proportions, and
unless checked in the near future 1t
Is liable to become nationwide.
u
According to Mr. Barber. these ants
have unique methods OF travelling.
Their favorite method seems to be TO
climb aboard freight car containing
sugar or other sweet substances and
ride to the point where the shipment
Is destined. Steamboats, on tho Mis-
sissippi have enabled ants to reach
practically every town in the great
valley OF the middle west. 1t Is per-
haps due to floods. however. that ants
are scattered more than In any other
way. They not only cling to drift
wood and half-rotted logs. but form
themselves in solid balls from two to
eight inches in diameter. AS the ball
enlarges from the addition Of other
workers which have been struggling
alone In the water 1t radually re-
wolves 1t is kept revolving slowly by
the outside workers continually striV-
ing to reach the top of the ball. thus
permitting air to reach the interior
The Argentine ant is small. being
about two and five-tenths milimeters
in length. 1t Is SO dark brown that
1t appears at hrst glance to be back
They travel constantly In broad trails
especially on trees. Large trees fre-
quently have as many as ten trails
two inches wide. forming a living
mass going up and down tree If
band of fypaper is placed on a tree
to arrest their progress. they try to
emulate the example Of German army
officers. by building a bridge of their
dead and proceed as if nothing was
In their way. An owner of a green
house put a wide band Of Paris green
around the building. He smiled with
delight in the confident belief that he
had found means of effectually'
Keeping the nuisances out. His smile
faded the next day when he discover
cd them coming into the building over
an electrical light wire. In Louisiana
the owner of an orange grove kept
them away for some time by building
q canal around his orchard The in
stailation of telephone, however,
made 1t possible for them to use the
wire as means of getting in
So great was the ant nuisance in the
cittes or beaumont, Orange, and Port
Arthur, in the southeatern section OF
Iexas, that the state department Of
agriculture found It necessary to mo-
bilize its forces there and fight the
ants to finish
A4
state Senator Steve King, who re-
sides at Beaumont. which is also the
nome OF Gov. William z. Hobby. found
conditions 80 bad that he was obliged
to sell his family cow which he had
bought to cut down the high cost of
living. He declared it was impossible
to Keep the travellers from Argentine
out OF either milk or butter Thou-
SANDS or other citizens We're not only
similarly afflicted. but in many other
ways.
one Beaumont woman caught 200
wy ants In one week at her home She
ADOPTED the effective method of MT
linE a little sirup on a shingle and
returning every half hour to scaid
lnem INTO vessel, after which thay
We're strained off. She counted the
NUMBER held in a measurinp elass
ana discovered the entire amo,,nt t@
total the above. "
In the yards and orchards IL u,,s
soumo so,n. tnat ants frequent the bios
SONS ana flowers, searching for the
sweetness therein. They also attend
plant ice. mealy bugs and such other
insects that secrete honeydew. Inv car
rying them down into their nests to
weather unfavorable conditions bring.
tnem up and placing them ont an tba
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