Show house rats live danl close to man house rats are fond ot of most any food that man eats ats and tor for this one big reason they are cound in the homes the granaries gran eries the barns the hay sheds the pig pens tho the garbage heap heal and any other place where they can find bits ol of meat grain cheese milk or the many other foods that they are fond of losses from rom depredations of house rats amount to many millions million ot dollars yearly to more in tact than those from kill all other injurious mammals combined the brown rat Is a pot pest in nearly all parts of the country while two other kinds of house rats known as the black rat and thle thie root roof riat are found within our oar borders ol of these three introduced tor for none Is native to america the brown rat is ie the most destructive and except the mouse the tha most numerous and most distributed brought to america juist before the revolution it has supplanted suo planted and nearly exterminated its less robust relative the black rait and in spite ot of the constant warfare ot of man has extended its range and steadily increased its numbers its dominance is duo due to its great fecundity and its ability to adopt itself ilsek to alit aMi sorts ol of surroundings it breeds in the middle part ot of the united states six or more times a year and produces from 6 to 20 young average 10 in a litter females breed when only 3 or 4 month old thus a pair bleeding bie eding uninterruptedly and without deaths could in three years IS 18 generations produce a posterity ot of individuals mice and the black and root roof rats produce smaller litters but the period ot of gestation about 21 days and the number ot of litters are the dame for all ROBERT H STEWART county agnit agent |