Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1869-05-21
agricultural
Insects and their Erterminators.

CauSeu eN incctts it.VtVuS W 'Ceot"eou'
constitutes one of the greatest difficulties
to which the farmer is exposed in the
cultivation oreyery crop known to man.
The army worm, the weevil, the nudge
the canSer worm, the caterpillar, the
maggot, all attack the vegetation 10 which
they are attracted. and are the terror OF
every man who would get his living by
cul,ivating fruit, or grain, or root crops,
or cotton, or any other crop upon which
the profits Of the farm depend. These
pests have been fought with almost every
weapon which the skill of man could
devise. The caterpillar has been assailed
with the hand. the brush and gunpowder.
The eanker worm has found his way
barricaded by tar, and printers ink, and
tree protectors. The maggot has not Yet
been defeated on the onion crop. The
aid of birds has been invoked-in vain.
The war between men and these Destroy
erS has been an unequal one. And in
spite of all our efforts thus far our forests.
our fruit, and our crops have been swept
away by the Inyriads of insects which we
could neither check nor destroy.
Of these evils have had my share.
The extensive orchards on my farm have
been seriously injured by insects. aud in
my neighborhood they have reduced the
fruit crop to such an extent rs to render
the question of profit from il one Of great
doubt | had used all the ordinary
methods Of destroying the invaders on
my own trees, with the usual success, and
the usual discourageinentS In 1865,
however, another power took the matter
In hand, so far rs caterpillars were con-
cerned At least. and they were entirely
eNterminated by some parasite which did
Is work 80 unobnusively that have not
Vet discovered what it was. | have had
no caterpllars since. This and some
facts in the history Of the wheat-midge
led me TO the conclusion that man might
arm himself with parasites in his war
against destructive insects. and make it y
war of determination. | think 80 still,
and i doubt not that science will one day
teach Us that all orr ordinary means of
warfare are poor and feeble, when COM
pared with those more effective weapons
which nature provides for us.
said in my address that had called
the attention OF entomologiStS to this
question; and in order that You may see
what their views are, Ibeg leave to quote
the following extract from a letter ad.
dressed to me by Prof A. s. Packard Of
the Peabody Academy of Sciences. Salem.
Mass, one Of our ablest entomologiSts.
with the hope that i, may enHghten the
explorer, and comfort the sufferer. He
saws:
Your suggestions that injurious in
Sccts may be successfully comhatted by
rearing their insect parasites in greater
uvm,ciS than naturally exist. has oc-
CURED 70 entomologist>, but has never
been practically carried out. In Europe.
gardeners have for years placed lady
bugs, and the 'Aphis licus' on trees and
shrubs infested by plant lice, which have
very effectually stripped the plants Of
these pests; but | believe, as YOU suggest,
that more could be done in rearing the
parasite specie, i. e, the ichncumon flies,
&c, which especially prey upon these
Injurious insects.
Oar most destructive insects are the
wheat-midge am Hessian fly, Dr. Fitch,
III his report on the injurious insects Of
New York, lS65, states tina; in Europe
these insects are comparatiy ely innocuous,
because they are nearly eNIeruinated
each year 10y their Internal parasites, mi
mute ichneumou flies, which arc vastly N
excess of their host, In this country.
however, the aid rcn cred the iarncr by
these minute parasites. is almost none AZ
all. He therefore j, ,onmends tie I'M
portation from EUROPE o. these parasites
aud shows how easily IL could be effected
by an expert in practical entomology,
believe that ~ immense saving Of
our crop, would be made if a commission
of chronological expert should act in
concert in the different states, anc pay at
tention to the rearing of these parasites;
which is the Surest way Of combating
these formidable pests, which actual lily
eat up millions of dollars in the United
States alone. Why should not each State
have one or more Insect commissioners,
as well as fSh commissioner, whose
chief duty should be the propagation of
parasite insects?
To show t.e Importance ofthis subject,
would cite IN Interesting fact, learned
from the eminent entomologist, DIR. n.
Hagen of the Museum of Comparative
Zoology at Cambridge, since receiving
your letter. He writes: 1t is an inter-
resting fact Stated by Dr. Ratzburg,
well known as writer on economical
entomology that in the German forests
since 1861. the ichneumon parasites (be-
fore regularly 10 per cent. of their hoStS)
have suddenly become no per cent. and
the number Of injurious insects upon
which these parasites lived has increased
cOrrespondingly from 40 to 80 per cent.
Perhaps to tbs dearth Of parasites is the
enormous calamity among forest trees to
the last 10 years attributable
With comparatively little effort, ento.
mologists will be able successfully to