The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1878-01-27
TIE PESTS OF TIE CENTURY.
25O. 200. 200 .OOO 0REfT-GREfT- GRAND
CHILDREN UITJfTN SIX MONTHS.
Another Talk with the Great Hectic Man Of
New Jersey The Origin or the Potato Tug
How u Travelled Ens,wnrd-rhe Five
Columns that Crossed the Mississippi River.

Andrew g. Fuller. the great collector Of bcctlcs.
The day was cold. Tho chronological sat ut his
little table near red hot stove. Cabinets con-
tanning over 5000 different species of beetles
stood against the walls. and bottles and tumhlcrs
filed with bugs in and out OF pickle sat upon
tho table. Mr.. Fuller was preparing box TO
send TO some eminent German collector. Among
others wcrc several potato bugs. readily recog-
nizcd by New Workers. who visited Concy Island
and Rockaway last year. when the ocean beach
was ridged with their bodies. Seeing that the
writer took an interest in the bug. and knew but
little concerning its history. Mr. Fuller opened
his fund OF information and the readers Of The
Sun have the result
Stepping to his library he opened the glass
doors and took from the shelf volume Of
John Curiis's British Entomology" published
serially In London between 1923 and 1910. Per
sons" said he seem TO think that II costs hut
little money to become thoroughly versed in
entomology. Here are seven volumes that cost
me over 1900 And there" opening the book
and laying his finger on the page, is the first
trace OF the potato bug"
II was an extract from paper rcad Ivy
Thomas Say before the Academy Of Sciences in
1924. While travelling with Nuttal. the we'll
known botanist, in what was then called Missouri
Territory which included Kansas and Colora-
mum. sort of scrubby tomato with prick
ly leaf, and not 1T TO cat. The country was
then entirely unsettled. and nobody knew
that the insect would eat potatoes. Mr., Nuttall
said that II seemed to thrive best on the
upper Missouri Apparently the Same beetles
were observed along the Arkansas river and ms
far south rs Alabama. hut later Investigations
proved them TO be distinct species, known as
the iuncia. While they thrive on the wild soda
mum. they cannot live on potato vines. Their
resemblance 10 the genuine bug IL so close that
II requires nm experienced eye TO distinguish
them. The black line on the side is broader
than that on the potato beetle. the lines being
joined at the end. This is the only outward diff
ference. Lately another striped beetle. colorcd
like n uuadroon, has been discovered In Califor-
MIA. Scientists have not yet found out what II Is
going to do.
The potato bug, evidently sprang into exist
ence near the Black HIS. or the Big Horn
country For centuries II fed upon the wild
solnnum. It's numbers being limited bv the
quantity Of food. The solanum "a found along
the Rocky Mountnins ~ far south ~ New Mex
leo. The Pixies Peak excitement broke out in
1888, There was rush for gold; Men canc
together from every State in the Union. Ono
ont of n hundred turned his attention 10 farm
ing aud tried to feed the ninety-nlne who were
digging for gold. Potatoes were planted and
the pest OF the solanum found "A more palatablc
food. IL got more nutrim"nt from one acre Of
potatoes than from hundred acres Of solanumi.
them. and the farmers in the new territory
stood aRhust at their numbers.
They besan 10 trayg East In lSGo they APP
peared IN Kansas. They must have been car
riei there in wagons. for they are heavy bodied
insects and can ny hut short distance. ns wns
shown hy the millions ailuHt along the coast last
year. NJ sooner had they struck the potato
fields ~ Kansas than they began to increase in
proportion 10 the sunp,y Of food. The same anne
crossed tho Missouri and invaded Iowa. With
IN three years they, spread through that state
and jumped the Mls-isslrpi into Illinois
remember" said Mr.. Fuller. " that in 1865
Walsh and Riley. cntomoloGists from Missouri.
sent me several potato be"tl.s found near Rock
beetles from his cabinet aud pointed them out.
At FIRST he said. the farmers were not alarmed.
and averred that it had always been there.
They had confpunded 1t with the iuncin. and
thought it had learned "A new trick ana gone To-
cating potatoes the same rs s'hoolhoys learn 20
chew tobacco, 1t was not until lstJ that the la
mented Walsh discovered that the bug. not
withstanding ia very strict resemblance. was
entirely distinct from the Juncta. and that while
both fed ON the wild solanum. hut one lhrivei
=" How d. YOU know" the writer inquired
that ihe jan ia does NOT f. ',iupuu the potatpf'
Wei, SAID tue good nniur,d entom nlogis
II sometimes costs something 10 llnd out SOM
thing. sent to Alabama and got the luneia ia
all it, stages. larNT, gruh-. and beetles. | -'u'
twiNe before could = them alive. The first
time. owing - lsid pa king. they were smashed
in the Post ONCE. ! put them I'm breeding
cnses and tried their tastes for various plnntS
Those led ON potato leaves ate a few AT first
hut gradually grew weaker and weaker until
they died. This proved that they might pos
Silly feed Oh poihio vines If starved TO II. but IA
the end they would he sure To die"
The IN ~ singular fenturc in the advance Of
ihe potno bug L. that they have crossed the
columns The northern column has been the
most rapid IN It's movements the southern lag
giug away behind, showing that a cold climate
Is the best suited for the propagation of the
pest They We're found in the southwestern
corner of Wisconsin a- early IL l>G2 and
= nal ttkt he
millions Of them were blown into Lake Michi-
Kan from northern Wisconsin. \ northwest
gan and northern Indiana. In ISIS they hogan
10 rr.mg"te IN indlana. ana IN Jniy 81 tna'
pearcd in ohio. Their progress eastward from
that time WIS Nclt rapid and IL lS'j they wrr.
/ dis 1Nrr'l in eastern Feun~yNanla. All the
! time they in rea-ed IN numbers with the ratio
! Of putatO fields. Their rat" of spcr, up 90 last
/ fall has averaged over seventy miles year
! The hug j. not found south of Marvland Tn,
hot weather kills 1t. and b viii nrVcr appear III
4 the Gull States, because i cannM live there.
During nil this time. continued Mr. Fuller
! cntOlolugist were warning the p"oplr and
urslns them /. tax steps To- prevent "a. spread
! 81 thc pes-. No action was taken. The bugs
/ had thor own way, and the Northern stat : have
hyromc their feeding and breeding grounds
/ II the farmers had listened To the naturali-ts
whole states might have been saved. As late rs
/ tho shore of Lake Huron Charles Y TlloV
/ State Entomoluglst of Missouri. mentioned THU
| far m his annual report lie told the Cana
]
| tho Western States millions Of dollars and pre-
| dctcd lis spreiu over Canada within tnri,
| months unless some,. ing was don" o. prevent
/ H. He alluded to Uncle sans territory h"
/ yond the Niagara river. ana -~ld mat dollars
and cents could saNe iS potato l.1'hc@. il'
warned both New York AMI Canada O., th'il
danger. and assorted that after the insect H.,
/ gut a footing within their borders. 81 900 Uu'
/ would he freely spent 10 accomplish what Il few
! thousands could du If applied at tn right time ~
/ That IL wnnt hlHN wrote. Mr. Fulivr said
| and ia" New lorner- AMI Canadians paid no
/ attention tuhim. What has been the result
/ Eight years have olut-rd. and they have al
| ready spent more tlm sluuu,OOo for Paris
| groom and ltbpr, and hll short crops and moro
| bugs ia the haraain. Low do you ,uppu~c III
| lev WH- r"Narltdt IN. state oi Missouri dis
/ IIl-sod hlm because they dldn wnuttu pay hin
| the raiiry sum OF s}.Nula year. whom. II they
| bad a,aled Themselves II his advice It would
/ haNe saved the country sluuOuuuu a year.
/ How would yOu have prevented the spread
/ ol ". bug asked the writer
INr} urN'r should have been allowed "a
! cross inc Ml--isripph r'nlieI Mr. Fuller. ",
an knew lh'N were annuity destroying crops I'm
/ COLORADO. \ few hundred dollars rightly np-
! pl"i would nave Kept iI"m west of the NJ isS So
sippLWhrlc they belonged. A. II Wac. they only
/ rrnssrd il mn ilN" Iilrr~. \ few Urn. with The
/ rs" of the telceruph. could have Stopp"d them
/ al each point. Ihcy have boon tound in Lu-
! rouo, hut Npu cam h' assured that they vii
never Toe allowed To spread They listen t. then
/ sclrntiil, mon over therr. and follow their all
] ft.tN ,tf al.