fly. It is a small fly about
one-sixth of an inch long, thick-bodied, and black. It is said to have
broad silvery circles on its legs, but no one ever stops to look at
these. Its proboscis is developed to draw blood freely, and it is always
in working order.

The only virtue the black-fly seems to have is its habit of quitting
operations at sundown and leaving to other tormenters the task of
keeping you awake at night. When the black-fly bites you will know it,
and it will leave its mark, when it does leave, which must generally be
by your help, for it holds on with commendable persistence. If you would
learn more of this charming insect, look for _Simulium molestum_ in a
book which treats the subject scientifically.

=No-see-um. Punky. Midge=

There is another pest of the North Woods which the guides call the
no-see-um. It is a very diminutive midge resembling the mosquito in
form and viciousness, but so small as to be almost invisible. Night and
day are the same to the no-see-um; its warfare is continuous and its
bite very annoying, but it disappears with the black-fly in July or
August. By September the mountains and woods are swept clear of all
these troublesome things, except at times and in some places the
ever-hungry mosquito, which will linger on for a last bite in his summer
feast.

The only way to relieve the irritation caused by the bites of these
pests, including the mosquito, is to bathe the affected parts with
camphor, alcohol, or diluted ammonia. When there are but one or two
bites they may be touched with strong ammonia, but it will not do to use
this too freely, as it will burn the skin.

=Gnats=

In the mountains of Pennsylvania the most troublesome insects I found
were the tiny gnats that persist in flying into one's eyes in a very
exasperating fashion. They swarm in a cloud in front of your face as you
walk and make constant dashes at your eyes, although to reach their goal
brings instant death.

It is not much trouble to get one of these gnats out of your eye when it
once gets in. All that is necessary is to take the eyelashes of the
upper eyelid between your thumb and first finger, and draw the upper
eyelid down _over_ the under eyelid. The under eyelashes sweep the upper
lid clear, and the rush of tears that comes to the eye washes the insect
out.

=Bees, Wasps, and Yellow-Jackets=

While honey-bees and wasps can make themselves most disagreeable when
disturbed, you can usually