Evening star., 1936-07-28
Most of Those Found
In Houses Originated
In Tropical Countries
Finding of Nest in Household Is of First
Importance in determination OF
This Pest

about, usually alone and aimleSSly,
with erratic motions. 1t is particularly
fond of Washington and imagine is
contemplating some sort OF an alpha
bet career here.
But a new and dashing family has
entered the field, and is rapidly climbs
ing to the top, due to numbers, endur-
ance and a dashing "furrin air.
These are the very tiny reddish ants.
called Argentine ants" which, appar-
emily, do not come from Argentina, but
from various other South American
countries. They tango and rhumba all
over our houses, and have actually
driven away a good many OF the old,
conservative ants that used to make
our home theirs. Their goings-on are
a source of humiliation and mental
agony to many a housekeeper, as they
are not respecters of mine and thine
even the whiskers of recently used
shaving brush are taken over by them
for Summer picnic. suppose they
like the soap.
The thief ant" which is small and
yellowish, should really be called the
murderer ant" He is q deep-dyed
wicked villain, who often lives in the
gallery walls OF another, larger ant,
where he kills and eats the helpless
little ones belonging to his host. A
lovely fellow!
The carpenter ant" is more like
his friend tine termite than any of
the others. He is dark brown, or black
in color, and very large-sometimes
growing to one-half inch in length. Be
it said to his credit, he usually attacks
decayed wood, but occasionally, when
life grows too monotonous, he has been
known to relish little well-done
sound wood, with slight dressing OF
sap. When he is really at work his
presence may be distinguished by the
sawdust which he kicks behind him
from his little mine.
* Xxx
THE nests of all these friends of the
family are usually located in the
walls, between f1oorings, behind base
boards, or beneath a cracked cement
cellar floor. If possible, when trying
to evict these guests, the first thing to
do is try and locate the nest, so that
you can start from scratch, so to speak.
One of the best ways to do this, aside
from tearing down the house, is to
watch the worker ants as they trip
merrily back and forth, and note where
they disappear into cracks or holes.
Several spoonfuls of poison may be
poured down the crack and the bell
tolled for the whole community.
When the nests cannot be located,
or are inaccessible, the only thing to
do is come out and fight in the open.
The use of poisoned sprays, sirups,
bats, powders or barriers is advo-
Gated And apparently. it takes try
ing out to determine just what kind
of bait is best to lead these ants into
trap, for some will come running
when the menu reads sweets" while
others are careful of their figures and
will only be lured by meat.
The Bureau of Entomology has sug-
geStionS for various poisonS which
they have found effective in ridding
houses of ants, and are at all times
glad to give information on the SUBJ
ject to any one who wishes to make
inquiries. I have some of their rec
concentrations here, also. which I
shall be glad to pass along IL any one
wishes. Great care is urged, however,
in using any poisons, so that pets or
children will not suffer, and so that
there is no possibility of the powders
or solutions getting into food.
Ant tapes are often helpful; that
is, strips of bias cloth which have been
boiled for a short time in a poison
solution. Remove the strips, dry
them and tie them about the legs Of
furniture. Or the legs may be set
in shallow dishes or jars containing
a small amount of kerosene. If this
is used, be careful that no one sprin-
kles cigarette ashes around or tosses
matches hither and yon. 1t is dis
tinctly not advocated for kitchen use.
In any event, the war against the
pests must be q constant one-for the
ant family Is riding high, wide and
handsome these days, and anything
that comes along it takes in its stride.
For 1t, life in your house Is one
eternal dinner party-and you know
what dinner parties cost!