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Nearly every one is familiar with} ants and knows something of their‘ habits, structure, mode of living, etc- They vary in size from the tiny red ant that is so frequcntly found in the kitchen and pantry, about Oneâ€" sixteenth of an inch in length, to the large, black carpenter-ant that lives in decayed stumps or old timbers. They occur in all parts of the World from the dry and arid deserts to the damp tropi'cal forests, and from the torrid zone to the arctic circle. The housewife goes to the pantry, some summer‘s day, to‘get some cake and finds that the frosting is covered; with tiny red ants. Further investiga-] tion reveals them in :the butter, sugar' and running all over everything ap-l parently. Sometimes it is the largerl black species which carried its love for sweet things to the sugar bowl. How am I to get rid of them? It is, of course, useless to try and kill them one at a time, like “swatting the fly."l The first step is to take everything? out of the infested place, clean every-E thing, burning papers, and throwl away or clean out any infested foods. Any foods that are likely to attract this insect like cake, bread, sugar. meat and similar substances, should be placed infantâ€"proof metal contain- ers or set over a dish of water in‘ which the ants will drown in tryingi to get at the food. The source of the colony should be Ioeated. If it be 'under the floor or in the wall the liberal use of carbon bisulphide will soon kill the queen and attendant ants. An old wood-box may be the seat of the trouble or its nest may be in the ground near the back porch. In using the carbon bisulphide care must be taken that no light or fire is near, as it is very inflammable. If ants like the sweet things in the cupboards one of the best remedies is to mix one part of tartar emetic with twenty parts of extracted honey. Syrup may be used“ in the absence of the honey. Put this in small saucers and piace where the ants will have access to it, but where it is inaccessible to the children or household pets. If the ants are grease eaters use grease instead of the honey in the same proportions as above. Keeping Ants From the Home. If ants are troublesome in lawns or in the garden, where they are, building their nests, they can be killed- even more rapidly than in the house. Drench the nests with boiling water or pour into them a small quantity of kerosene or coal oil. An- other method is to inject bisulphide of carbon into the nests, the quantity of the chemical epending upon the size of the nests. After this fluid has been poured in, the entrance to the nest should he closed by a blank- et or inverted pan placed ovenit in order to retain the chemical. The, fumes of the bisulphide will pentrate slowly through the underground channels and kill the ants. Child Laborers. Does the compulsory school atâ€" tendance law protect children from heavy_ work and long hours in the fields? There are interested and vigorous school officers who do their best to enforce the law; but even at best the period of attendance requir- ed is meagre. There is always a loophole through which children may be piped to Work. If Canada is to be a country of healthy and intelligent people, both parents and children must realize that School is better than work for children until they are sixteen. It is quite true that “the more ydu learn the more you’ll earn." Most of us think of the farm as an ideal place, and no one can ques- tiOn the wholesomeness of much in farm life. But _we have learned that it is not wise to take it for granted that all country life in Qanada makes a child happy and healthy. It must be admitted that too mach farm labor interferes shockingly with the child’s .schooling, overtaxes his strength, and impairs his future usefulness. Againâ€"The Fly. With Germany disposed of, our thoughts can again turn to the at- ‘home problem of disposing of that ever-present menseeâ€"the fly. The swatterâ€"â€"â€"to be sure, no house is home without a, fly swatth and a baby and where there’s a baby there ought to be two swatters. one for father and the other for mother to Poisonâ€"-any and all kinds, but it should be kept high enough to be well out of thegeach of children and domestic animals. If insect powder is used be careful not to scatter it about the room and then close the doors. forgetting Dickie the canary. r..__ Tanglefootwplenty of it. Hang the kind that comes in rolls from the ,gas jet and if sister runs against it and carries the ball off attached to her backhair, net/pr mind. You are waging a great war, and who can stop to think of trifles. The kitten may vrap herself in it, to lhtr terror, land ather may sit on the sheet you [have laid, for just a moment, in his favorite chair, but it catches files as well. and that is the real issue. well, and that is the real Issue. ‘ Formaldehydeâ€"«that is perhaps best of all. In an old saucer put a Imixture composed of ten parts of liormaldehyde, eightyâ€"eight parts of water and two parts of sugar in the ‘centre of the dish pot a small sponge and set where it will not be disturb- ed. The flies drink the mixture and die almost immediately. With this as with all other poisons be very .careful to keep well out of the reach [of domestic animals, children and écareless people. It’s the fly you are 1 after. Birds ar thing th: pure air 'Gains in Net Profits, Current Loans and Assets. Shareholders of the Merchants Bank | of Canada who attended the fifty-sixth [annual meeting at the head ofiice on |Wednesday¢ the 4th instant? were (treated to the most satisfactory re- ,port in the history of that well known banking institution. The statement presented showed net profits of $1,- 383,569, a new high record in the his- Itory of'the bank and $146,000 more {than was earned in the previous year. iAs a result of the larger earnings the lldividend was increased from 10 to 11%. Not only were net earnings the ‘largest in the history of the bank, but every department of the bank‘s activi- !ties showed satisfactory increases; lgains being registered in current loans, deposits, liquid assets and in l1total assets. One of the most outstand- "ing achievemean was the large in- r‘crease in deposits. Interest bearing Hdeposits now stand at $91,904,000, as ,'compared with less than $76,000,000 “for the previous year. Non-interest _3bearing deposits gained from $34,800; ;; 000 to $43,552,000. In other words to- '|ta1 ‘deposits in Canada now amount ‘ to over $135,000,000, as compared with $110,000,000 in the previous year. It is ;\somewhat significant that despite the , large increase in deposits the bank‘s ,' clients subscribed to over $45,000,000 :iworth of Victory Loans, 0t which only MERCHANTS BANK CLOSES BEST YEAR IN HISTORY Despite the fact that the bank is doing a continually larger sha of the coun~ ,try’s business a further examination of the report shows that careful, conâ€" servative banking methods character- ized the policy of the management. The bank has kept an unusually large proportion of its assets in liquid or quickly available form. Of its total assets of over $166,725,000 no less than $62,750,000 are in current coin, 'Doniinion notes, Dominion and Pro- } vincial Government Securities. These r liquid assets are over $5,000,000 great- '.e1' than a year ago and bear a very :ihigh proportion to the bank’s total .tliabilities to the public. Total assets ihave increased over $25,000,000 dur- Z‘ing the year. ‘ In order to provide for future ex- a little over $4,000,000 were conver- sions from previous issues. Another satisfactory feature is the growth in commercial loans; these having in- creased by nearly $20,000,000 and now stand at $95,874,000. This large in- crease indicates very clearly that the Merchants Bank is doing its full share in catering to the business needs of the community. 000,000, although it was stated by the President. Sir H. Montagu Allan, that there was no intention of issuing any of this stock in the immediate future. The president also spoke feelingly of the death of Mr. Andrew A. Allan. one of the bank‘s directors. His place has been tilled by the appointment of, Mr. Lorne C. Webster. An interesting evidence of the lbank‘s progressiveness was shown by the statement that since the signing of the armistice the bank has opened E88 branches and sub-bran hes which not only provided employment for the .bank's oflicers returning from over- ‘ seas, but furnishes that much more ad- ditional banking facilities to the pub- lic. Mr. Macarow, the general mana- ger, stated in the course of his ad- dress that ont of a staff of 1,300 at the beginning of the war enlistments num- bered 823, or nearly 100% of the eligibles. Of the number going over- sees, ‘73 men made the supreme sacri- fice, while 87 were wounded. The general manager in his analys- is of present conditions spoke optimis- tically regarding the bank's position and its ability to share in the coming expansion of the country's business. ,4; l l In order to provide for future ex- pansion the shareholders authorized the directors to increase the capital of the bank from $10,000,000 to $15,- 000,000, altlu President, Si there was m of this stock The of the one of has I): Mr. L1 The old board was re-elected and at a subsequent meeting of directors Sir H. Montagu Allan was re-elected president and Mr. K. W. Blackwell, Vice-President. A good paste is made with grated potato and boiling water. Boil ti“ thick, -~ ~ ~- ‘W .- K are that very susceptible to any- shuts off their supply of Thousands of mothers throughout Canadaâ€"many of them your neigh- borsâ€"speak with thankfulness con- cerning the use of Baby's Own Tab- lets. Once they have used the Tab- lets for their little ones they would use npthing else. The Tablets are an absolutely safe medicine for even the youngest baby, being guaranteed by a government analyst to contain neither opiates nor narcotics or other harmful drugs. Concerning them Mrs. David McRobb. Divide, Saslh says:â€"”I have used Baby’s Own Ta\)- lots and have found them so satis- factory I Would not be without them." x'l‘he Tablets are sold by medicine idealers or by mail at 25 cents a box from The Dr. Williams' Medicine 00., Bl‘OCliVillO, Ont. Lov e’s Labor . What have I done toâ€"day, now me think, I haven’t read the book- I s}? , have read; I didn’t make that can on Mrs. Bv'mk. Nor spend _the youthâ€"restoring" hour in bed. Nor massage out the wrinkle in my cHeek. I didn’t bake the fruitâ€"cake, but ‘ may~be I wrought as wellâ€"I sang my son to sleep, Close cuddled and content upon my knee. What have the Guild And quite forgot my shoppingl‘trip to town; My music rack with treasure amply filled, I left the cover of my organ down. I didn’t sew the new flower on my What have I done to~day~?â€"â€"now let me see, I’ve put the paltry things from out my soul, I’vé mothered Laddie and he’s {flayed " 0 with me And We've been happy; making that my goal. I’ve learned why God, creating 1m- man kind Made Mo‘thers to be guarded safe from harms, To train a baby’s active, eager mind, To hold a little lad in loving arms. hat, But son and I played marbles on the floor, And there was Virtue quite as much in that Perchance than though I had acâ€" complished more. THANKFUL MOTHERS. Old Gentleman (baldheaded but warmhearted): “Don’t cry, Willie! Grandpa will playfiIndianis with you.” are genuine ' (I ' ‘ ,7 Domxmon "Dominion" Tires, made m the famous Doâ€" minion Rubber System Factoryâ€" by the same experts who perfected Domi- nion AutomobileTires :1 ~â€"the most popular tires in Canada. It is their superior quality which shows in the easy riding, the sturdy wear, the extra mileage of Dominion Tires Sold by the Leading Dealer: “Unquestionabl‘Y the BestTires m, f Impimm SW INVEST YOUR MONEY MR. FARMER LUMBER DEALER Plans and Prices. I done today Ask your For xd them so sans- be without them.” sold by medicine at 25 cents a box lHlS' Medicine 00., 7WA®%â€"A should the , be missed Which is Supposed to Insure Persons Against Evil Spirits. Once a year. during the first fifteen days of the seventh Chinese month. the curious ceremony of Yn-Nan-Whei is eelebmted. being, in fact, the paying of homage to the land and sea devils. Seven priests carry out the ceremony by offering up various forms of prayer and maizi an unearthly noise by beating large gongs. Anyone wishing to show his respect to the devils can do so by a payment of 600 cashâ€"â€"about tiventy-two centsâ€"- to each of the priests, for which to each of amount the formance “10(165 in the ting ment red paper boa‘ with fights h" ing down the These light the sea devils be able'- to s dark nights-â€" predate. Having formance. the pers it has beep carried py in the convicth lose any of his far CURIOUS CHINESE CUSTOM. 10E ate at remuneration arduous occur Evil spirits. F of 2,000 cash a mer boats. abm Manufacturers, Exporters and importers, Crown Diamond Paints, Chemicafls, Dye Stuffs and Tanners Supplies. will (:0 ‘ twer Sid? V8! thei little 2 mar h a 1 Lhmlt MUNRO’S PURE PARKS GREEN out g( m tha {lily t} MW? 1 T EUR {R , W 1N )I 1e fini utmue their per- 3 hoursâ€"~21 truly for men engaged ation of propitia- 'or an extra pay- number of small t six inches long in be sent float ith the current. the tha 1t nti 3d. this per- rhose behalf 53 away hap- he will not ‘oughout the is respect . payment we cents“ or which their pet‘- th )Il thi 110! Manufactured by y ma ut on which us an- z is made to cqnfom; en powder, whlch m1 stores where garde“ fit of MONTREAL Don’t Left Him Sneak Up on ‘3 Old Potato Bug_ doesq’t Sneak Up on You Old Potato Bug doesn’t blow a horn to let you know he is com- ing. Just when your potato plants are shooting out tender green leaVes this deadly destroyer sneaks in and begins to Chew them up. Have a hot reception all ' ady for the pest by spraying plan with 4% allowed on Savings. Interest computed quarterly. 5'/Z% on Debentures. Interest payable half yearly. Paid up Capital $2,412,578. Toronto Office 20 King St. West. Toronto Office. The Beg an )OKE ll ,mp The Great West Permanent Loan Company. 11‘ Small Boy: “B-but you wor you’re scalped already!” airing 11 tm as mpr ther ioth it either by sickness or drowning. .t the whole ceremony may be L upon as an insurance policy. ster nning mtu ( 1n 0 11 m} ) GOVernment standard. ; evenlv m water. of the troop, “you 8 little busy bee’? said Billy, exam’u of Wisdom, Anyhow 30y Scout weekend had grown tired of bin. So the wise asted tha£ they have cert. One boy sang; Then there was a m: sold. 20 Klng St. West. ght Spray exam'u “I only mpervious ltm lster mow