The Charleston daily news. [volume] (Charleston, S.C.) 1865-1873, 1869-09-09

VI very t0utyt
80 4tonN ". n. PorE,
AZ cSAEa OF st. Luke's.
sAIs@ -E---S q Z se..-gsIr.:s. .
The Cotton Worm.
It must be confessed that oH our, coast at
least the present season has NOT been such,
on the whole. as to have warranted; Ah in for.
mer times, the presence OF the cotton worms
TO any visible extent Yet they are upon ~. !.
Their. recurrence, however, is none Ehe less
assignable to some producing c,nse or new
combination Of circumstances. which It mSy be
Of the highest importance to know. ~
The presence Of the worm to however great
an extent one year by no means involyek the
necessity Of their coming the next. Nay, In
old times just the contrary was held. They
swept everything bssore them in 1904, 1925 and
1846; Jet not one was to be seen or heard Of in
1908, 1925. or 1s47; nor after 1s4s was any ap.
precieble, injury suffered, from these insects,
save in one or two local instances. until tsfter'
1881 at least, and, think. after 1862 q space
ofhfteep or sixteen years. r. iilys.j2
These broad facts must be fairly. Kept in
view. q oi5a ~ tMroG I fl t'xsi3 ~ So
The quesHons;Rhioh have excited inquiry In
so1necslSa With this s subjects known tome
lst. Do these ;inaects hibernate With us
ID Do they bufroS in the earth Ssr,- AZ 2t.l
Sd. Has the aestruStion Of the birda euy-
thing to DC with the unprecedented recurrence
4th. Has the absence Of .stockn il in our pas. sI
lures been conducive to their coming = 80 i!
9th. sscafeless ddltivStioni Or deEeceiye
9Th. Has the failure TO uss our accustomed
msnurps q like tendency to produce them 9q
7th. Bias the continuous planting over OF
the cotton fields In cottHepromotedo or ihduced
the Horm2 ~ l. p .,j,.,,., ~. p"
Iproppse to answer these conoisely... ~, !.
They do hibernate with us. A genuine moth
was taken last January by Mr. Ashe seabrook,
an intelligent and obseryant young gentleman,
who could not possibly be deceived by the
genuinenees OF the moth. The insect was bad
ly injured by the cold, and though carefully
provided for, died soon after being taken. Mr..
seabrook reports having seen several after,
wards. Mr.. Ephraim Seabrook, Jr, reporta
also having,se the genuine worm, with which
he was perfectly conversant, eating the young
cotton in the latter part OF April, 1853. 80,
too, were they seen early this spring on James
Island. as reportedin The NEWS.
The cocoon Of this moth does undoubtedly
bnrrow in the earth. I say several ploughed
out OF the earth about the list April, 1868; took
them up and found them active, and prcnoune-
ed them unquestionably the cocoon Of the cot
ton caterpillar. So did my foreman, smart,
observant and experienced man OF his color.
Planters around me reported the same thing.
This spring the cocoons we're ploughed up BY
thousands. This COCOON Is as well known and
as distnguishable BY certain peculiarities both
of motion and otherwise as the worm or
moth, in which mo- experienced observer can
be eni mistaken is Idle any longer to entertain
AS to the supposed destruction Of the BIRDS,
This Is simply question Of fact. There has
been no such destruction. The coast swafms
with birds OF all kinds, HENCE tbis point is dis,
missed as fatally defective as to taot. The
absence Of domestic animals thought ct
one time had much to do with the subject.
Upon reflection I think otherwise. First, for
the reason that We have no pastures. but plant
In Texas and Florida, where. these animals
still abound, the WORLDS arc ms bad, II not
worse than anywhere else. 80 100 do they
prevail In other sections without diminution,
whero the ''stock''r has been preserved. Still
fnIthers Hhen onr. pastures were. filed with
sstockS S0f ALI kinds this did not prevent the
coming OF the Worms in 1804, 1872, 1916, or par-
tally In intermediate years. In 1915 they came
face Of The earth by the l6th:oi August, : -,
The fscte arc too strongly gliusti this spec
nlstion, att toleays any yslhe 1p II, q IS ~
age theogyGmlst show the same fste.H Facts
are too stE99Rly against 1t TO- render the CON-
cluston in this connection, at all admissible SO
far. aB tha presence OF the worm is concerned.
cause, .is. the last to be attacked BY the worm.
Again, the cultivation which we admit to
have been. good in 46 and '26, did not prevent,
their Coming early And. in countless shordess.
NOT 40 We md sattern work Tin certain SEQ
tons, Or ON certain plantations, conducive to
the presepce OF the ToIm there, beyond other
places. Tar or near. My, ..those plantations
where they invariably made their appearance
first, when they came at all, sometimes going
best cultivated In this Becrioh, and among the
best lands. In Gt: Helena .Pafish, with which.
had great YsIniliarItyi 7 ,N9uld cite the fol-
pstspsP Ell SoS pases a9s pss oSn
Popea Oaks, Mr. Jos. D. Edlug's Neck place,
Or. Richard Fullex's Cat Island, Mr.. Joseph
/ Hazels Dist liant Island; Mr.. Joseph j. Pope's
% For ape potioS of Sky ' years @ 81 more When,
ever the worms came at tap they Invariably,
made their appearance frat on these. places
sometimes weeks. IN adysnoe,. of. all others,
the places cited were crltiyAtsd, drained and,
oa5ed tor N tne most exem mplafy, manp9r. Be,
'stdea thu, whsteyer may lba the experience tof
damSathg 70 the presunpA ion, dfCxn from
ckyeless' 'culti and bad drSinagst toitihhi
g is notoIious that cotton! SYi6luy peGlsct.,,
ea aiast.yesr escaped the Esye8es q ihs Not@
psststieS Sss Eah,oo tRS aSilss hsa Mfs Jsnsa aa
HeSwafds cotton which ;vls fAlrly worked and
very promising. was eaten 70 the .rads ipot,s
worm .msde. 1tas sppsAssncs iR ths tfeedmsnfs
sss snanss ns sas Ssas sas Ss 1Ss It'd
grass: Fields oh the sdjoipipg pis sistson In
go2d order And growing lulurisatiy, were also
eaten up!I can but conciude theresbIe tgat1At
tne potency OF the assigned ckuse 10 pfuduSiHs
the worm, borrower much higK nnxntffiR Ahd
dttchingit tdq.f mAy Ave ftoi DO WITH feacSiIng
ff5 results, despite the worm, ip fsts SeAG1IS,
sanss ns G$;sssGs sse @ 81 ss sa
| just dishibssds csnnos see how msnnf.
| 1dg oshr have anything TO -iir with the; bfta
vention Or producing, Of the worm, though