It has been found that these powders owe their insect-destroying virtue to an acrid resin, deprived of which they are practically worthless. This resin can be extracted by alcohol, and the method to be employed also the various formalities to be observed in converting the tincture into a destroyer are as follows :

Obtain from a druggist one-half pound of Dalmatian insect powder and one and one-half ounces of the oil of eucalyptus. Pour them into a large bottle, add one quart of alcohol, cork tightly to prevent evaporation, and shake frequently during the next two or three days. Then obtain a funnel large enough to hold the contents of the bottle, also a three-gallon demijohn. Lightly pack the bottom of the funnel and its neck with absorbent cotton and insert it in the mouth of the jug. Shake the bottle and pour its entire contents into the funnel. The fluid portion, which is the tincture of the insect powder, will slowly filter through the cotton, and as it does so pour more water into the funnel until sufficient has been used to fill the demijohn. And each time water is added the muddy mass at the bottom of the funnel should be stirred, otherwise the filter will be choked. What remains in the funnel should finally be thrown away.

The demijohn - which must be well stopped - now holds all the active and poisonous principles of the insect powder, also another powerful insecticide as well as antiseptic, the oil of eucalyptus. Without the latter the diluted tincture would have been destructive to nearly all small insects, but one can never be too sure when dealing with fleas, therefore the stronger the destroyer the better. And besides adding greatly to its power the oil has given it an odor that is quite agreeable to most people, thereby rendering it of special value for treatment of house pets. But possibly the most fastidious may object to this odor, in which event they have but to choose some favorite perfume oil, as rosemary, verbena, or the like, and after properly diluting it with alcohol add it to the mixture, which should be at once well shaken.

This flea destroyer has the color of whiskey and stains very light coats - although the discoloration washes off readily after the hair has dried - consequently it would scarcely be advisable to apply it to a white dog that one desired to appear at his best.

In using it pour a sufficient quantity into a hand basin and apply with a sponge or brush until all the hair down to the skin has been well moistened, and then allow it to dry on. As its effects are not nearly so fleeting as those of the insect powder its use is seldom demanded oftener than twice a week even in the most troublesome times, but it can safely be resorted to daily if there is occasion for it. And if this agent is sprinkled over the bedding of dogs and about their kennels, fewer direct applications to them will be required.

Some breeders make an infusion of insect powder by steeping a pound of it in a pailful of boiling water, and this is then added to ten or twelve gallons of water and in the mixture the dogs are given a bath. But boiling water does not extract the virtues of the powder nearly so completely as alcohol, therefore in an infusion there is a loss; and when so diluted it is extremely doubtful if it has other than a stupefying effect merely, from which the fleas recover in a very short time.

The cost of the three gallons of the diluted tincture is less than one dollar, but notwithstanding this fact it will doubtless be held too expensive by many who keep a large number of dogs, consequently it is advisable to consider herein another and cheaper insecticide.

Crude carbolic acid suggests itself, for it costs only thirty-five cents per pint, while half this quantity when added to water will make a washing-tub full of safe and efficient flea-destroyer, and one that will keep indefinitely without losing its strength. But this must not be confounded with the carbolic acid in common use, of which there are several kinds. First comes the pure in the form of white crystals, - so susceptible to moisture that they soon fuse into a hard mass - then the carbolic acid usually found in drug shops, which is at least one remove from the first in the matter of purity, although the two outwardly so closely resemble one another the differences are scarcely appreciable. The next remove is a nearly colorless liquid which is generally employed where large quantities are needed to disinfect cesspools, sewers, etc. After this appears the crude acid, the kind herein recommended, a sirupy fluid of deep brownish color - nearly black - and really only about one-half carbolic acid, the most of the remaining ingredients being worthless substances.

When diluting crude carbolic acid it is advisable to use an alkali, and the common soap of the kitchen will answer every purpose. One pound of this soap having first been dissolved in about a gallon of hot water, half a pint of carbolic acid should be added and thoroughly mixed by vigorous stirring. Then the whole should be poured into a tub or barrel holding about fifteen gallons of water.

The destroyer is now ready for use, and can be applied with a sponge, or dogs can be dipped in it - in which case care must be taken to prevent the solution from getting into the mouth, nostrils or eyes.

The duration of the bath should not be over half a minute, and after being permitted to run about for five minutes the dogs should be dipped in a tubful of clean water,, or rinsed off by means of a garden sprinkler, and then allowed to dry themselves in their own way.

Strong, hardy dogs would scarcely need rinsing, but still it is a wise procedure, for some forms of the crude preparations contain more carbolic acid than others and poisonous absorption might possibly take place; moreover, the solution if often applied and allowed to dry on would likely make the hair dry and brash.

This crude carbolic solution is not only destructive to fleas and other troublesome insects but both preventive and curative of the most common form of mange and many other parasitic diseases, hence its use about twice a week in summer is likely to prove highly beneficial in a variety of ways. But for obvious reasons it is available •only in warm weather or where kennels are comfortably heated in winter. And since very nearly all such agents are more or less prejudicial to the coat it should be used sparingly if at all on dogs being made ready for shows.