Los Angeles herald., 1890-04-27
SCALES AND PARASITES.
MR.. f. o. CASS HAS A WORD TO SAY
ON THE SUBJECT.
He Claims to Have Insects That Are Pred
atory on the Several Sorts of Injurious
Parasites to an Important Degree.

RdrdSlt6S TO an Important OeRree.
EDITORS HERALD The subject of in
sect pests and parasites therefor having
been thrust SO prominently before the
public, and having again been placed
on the defensive by an article published
in some of the dailies (not the HERALD)
of the 23d, l feel it my duty to explain
why the article referred to appeared.
On Monday last l gave our County
Board of Supervisors an invitation to
visit my place in company with Prof.
Coquilette, expecting them to report, for
the benefit of the public, its condition
as compared with what it had been a
few short months ago, and explain the
cause of the disappearance Of so large a
per cent. of the scale.
Now let us see how these good inten-
tiOns on my part were treated. Word
seems to have been Immediately sent to
members of the County Horticultural
Commission, spraymen, and all their
sympathizers who could be reached, the
very men OF all others who would be in
| terested in an adverse decision on all
|
orange-growers are so deeply concerned
virtually the same crowd have had to
deal with once or twice before, headed
by G. M. Heintz, their self-constituted
mouthpiece, and who is the author of
the article referred to, and who has at
tempted to express the views of our
honorable Board of Supervisors. l say
attempted, because l believe he has
done them, as well as myself, gross in
justice, and in one of today's papers he
claims few errors have entered into
this report, in other words, these state
ments were too rank to suit our honor
able board.
met this gentleman a few weeks ago
in his Office, for the first time. He was
overioyed to see me, shook my hand in
the warmest, most friendly manner pos
sible; in fact, bubbIed over with pleas
ure, apparently. AS he continued in
this strain for some time, the thought
occurred to me, what a racket few
loose shot make in an old dry bladder
At this interview he fattered caioled
and finally raved like maniac, because
he could not make me indorse certain
washes in which he seemed to be very
much interested. If 1 would do this, /
was offered his friendship, and if / dared
oppose him he would make it hot for
me. He again threatened to do me up,
on the day before he visited my place,
and he visited it, as it seems to me, with
no other purpose. In fact believe most
of this report was written the day
previous to the visit.
Now, let us examine him as an eX-
pert. He is the party who, few weeks
ago, made a tour of the fruit-stands, and
sent an article to the papers claiming to
have found red and other scales on the
oranges. When questioned in regard to
the other scales he claimed to have
found, he went through about the whole
category, and wound up by saying that
he found the San Jose scale on the
oranges, and the red and San Jose scale
were the same.
On the 10th of this month, Inspector
Weiss told me in the presence OF re-
porter, that he had visited my place for
the first time, with Commissioner
Kercheval, a day or two previous, and
that he was prepared to admit the exis-
tence of every parasite l claimed, and
that they could find very few live red
scales, which fact was very gratifying to
him, and he wished to make this state
ment, as an injustice had evidently
l.
Kercheval made the same admissions to
me in regard to the disappearance of the
red scale, but although he found the
twice-stabbed ladybug and its larvae in
large numbers, he could not believe this
to be alone the cause; but thought, as
do also, thatin all probability our severe
rains had something to do with it.
Now let me say for the encouragement
of our fruit-growers that there are San
Jose scale parasites on my place which
have done excellent work, in fact, have
saved my pear orchard. In the last an
nual report of our State Board of Horti-
culture, with which l am in unison, }
appears cut of this parasite, on page
2S2, and it is mentioned again in one or
two places in the same work. 1t was
found on my place about two years ago
and when the State board was here |
was assured that they had succeeded in
establishing two colonies of them up
north.
There is also black scale parasite at
work all through this section, which /
believe in year or two will rid our
orchards of this pest. If anyone will
take the trouble to examine the black
scale, l think he will find that a large
proportion of them are punctured-fully
nine-tenths of them on my place are so
punctured-and be need have no further
anxiety about this scale, as we shall
.soon have as clean fruit as can be raised
in the foothills. This parasite is men
toned, and cut of it given in the same
work, on page 281.
The lace-winged fly, described on page
278 of the same work, as being the most
beneficial of insects, destroying large
quantities of scale, has been found on