The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-02-04
ELIMINATION OF 2
 MOTH DIFFICULT
Will Destroy Anything From
 Clothes To Shaving Brushes, Says Entomologist

Says Entomologist
 WASHINGTON, Feb. 2.-Complete elimination of clothes moths from the home is difficult. They breed not only in wearing apparel. but in carpets, rusi and upholstered furniture, a single piece of which may often furnish . steady supply of moths to restock the entire house. They can be reduced, however in any home or establishment by using the control measures prescribed by the United States department of agricul. ture. 7s
 Persons owning clothing subject to attack can afford to buy chests or cab. inets that are very tight in which to store them. Trunks ar usually not moth-proof. Red cedar chests when in good condition are among the tightest containers on the market. Such chests keep out the moths and the characteris- tic odor of their wood kills any newly matched or young moth larvae that may be confined in them with the clothing, Tight chests or cabinets, the walls of which can be made to absorb as much ceder oil as in found in the wool of containers of equal size, are as valuable as cedar chests. ,-
 Clothes moths are the prime offend CTS among fabric pests," says B. A. Black, entomologist, in a department bulletin. "The moths or 'millers must common about houses have a wing spread of about half have and are yellowish, or buff-colored. They very seldom fly fitting about it as do 50 many large and small moths that enter houses from outside. Moths that fly in large numbers about the home light are generally feeders upon outdoor vegetation and will not eat household fabrics. Their presence in the house is accidental-they have merely been lur- ed inside by the lighted lamp. t'
 They Prefer Darkness
 'The common clothes moths are usu- ally seen flying in dArkened corners and just beyond range of the brightest rays of the lamp. They prefer darkness. They are frightened when clothing and other objects are suddenly moved, and are then seen running rapidly or fly ing to conceal themselves in the creases of clothing, cracks. or other dark places.
 "The moths, or millers as they are often called, have imperfectly developed mouth parts and could not feed upon fabrics if they desired. Their purpose in life, is merely to lay eggs that dew elop into the worms e larvae, which alone can cause destruction. Neverthe- less, every moth Killed helps to reduce in- festations by preventing more eggs being laid. The moths lay their eggs in and about clothing and other objects subject to attack. From the eggs are matched the larve, or worms. When these become full grown they are whit ish and about half an inch long. The larvae spin cocoons in which they transform to the pupa or chrysalis stage, and during this stage the in- sect changes to the adult, or moth. Thus each generation of clothes moths passes through four distinct stages, namely, the egg, the larvae or worm, the pupa or chrysalis, and the adult OF moth. Only the worm or larva of the clothes moth is capable of destroying fabrics.
 There are two very common species fof clothes moth. They are the case making clothes eth and the webbing clothes moth. The tapestry moth is less often found, though it may become destructive.
 The adult of the ease-making clothes moth has wing expanse of about half an inch. Its head and fore wings are grayish yellow or the middle of the outer portions. The hind wings are white or grayish and silky.
 ''The case-making clothes moth is so named because the larva, for it's pro- tection, makes portable case out of spun silk and fragments of the fabric upon which it feeds. These case at- tain length of from four-sixteenth to six-sixteenths of m inch. The larva almost never leaves it's case. The webbing clothes moth is the most abun- dant and injurious clothes moth.
 Brothered By One Type
 During the last few years, also prac- tically all instances of severe clothes moth damage reported by manufactur. ing plants throughout the North, in- cluding Chicago, Boston and New York, have been associated with this species. For years it has been the pre- vailing species in certain houses in Western Massachusetts and South. ern in distribution, although it is often called the Southern clothes moth. The tapestry clothes moth is not so common in the United States as the two fore going clothes moths. The tpestry moth is said to prefer coarser and heavier fabrics than the two other specis of carpets. horse blankets taDeetries felt.