New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1891-03-10
THE GYPSY MOTH COMMISSION.

What at a hasty glance, would appear to be
the first gun Of the agricultural insect war for 81
has lust been fred In Massachusetts. Examine
tion shows II 70 he rather the last gun for the
war Of go though il is high time that forces were
marshalcd for the summer campaign, and It's open
ing cannot be delayed much longer. The public.
good. easy body OF people thinks that while the
March SHOWS lie deep upon the ground we
need not trouble ourselves about insects, but the
practical insect general, grown gray In score OF
campaigns, knows that down under the snow ana
deep i'm the ground the hardy and crafty bug Is
beginning 70 awaken and 10 get his appetite into
working order Accordingly, II is in March that
the far-seeing State Entomoogist overhauls his
souirt-guns and sets up his long-range spraying
apparatus.
The recent occurrence In connection with the
Massachusetts, insect army, to which we just re-
fcrred is the removal by The Governor of the State
Gvpsy Moth Commission, an apparently super
Huous act on the part OF the Executive, CIVILIAN
utterly unacquainted with bug warfare The
Gvns,. Noth Commission was created year ago
70 1gbt the gypsy moth. n small but industrious
insect which prcys on trees. Last season the Oom-
mission. with Warren W. Rawson as president.
%, rricd on a campaign marked alike by snbtlrty
If nlon and vi,or Of execution. II greatly checked
the ravaccs of the moth, saving over 'o,ooo trees.
II purchased three tons Of Paris green ana uS'd
ohnu, two-thirds Of il. hOgshcad OF water was
used 10 each pound of the poison ana 'ach
tree was played thoroughly, so some ldc'
may bc obtained OF the simple Work OF
what we may call the artillery practice. FOR
this WAS not all-the commission climbed tnes
and DESTROYED thousands OF the mothS nests
George r. Tnpler secretary of the commission
alone wore ont six pairs Of trousers IN CHAMBER
u, M trees for nests. and H. y. Dayton, the treas
urcr would have Jared AS badly hod he h"t
early in the season got himself pair ot stout
bucbsl,in trousers. coppcr-riyetcd and with steeI
buttons While in the trees the COMMISSION was
arod a., a dozen times by farmers, who mlStook
tho members for fruit-thlcves, and local doctors
rcopcd a rich harvest by picking birlShot out of
,h.,, at tbe cNtravagant rate of 10 cents a shot.
Once the vice president, Mr.. Ferguson, was kept
i, a tree all night by n vicious black dog with
a SUNNY tail and II Jagged disposition which could
not distinguish between an applc-thleI ana sell
cntifc man. But after all OF TINS WORK the
commission found only ingrattudr, the cry hcing
raised that by It's liberal use of Paris green 1t
was cndanccrng the lives of the people. Folks
seemed 10 think that the commission should nave
.et rat-traps for the moths, or that they should
have caught each moth separately, taken 1t To
a retired spot and chopped of its head with an
axe Now the commission is abolished ana Treas
urer DAYTON has sent his leather trousers To
Uerry Simpson, of Kansas President kawSoh
points out that the real reason why the commits
sion was intcrfcred with was that 1t was cconom-
zeal and did not use up the appropriation As
il is. Massachusetts may look for gypsy moths
this coming summer by the million.
Destroying cntomologists everywhere Will be
sorry TO hear of this hasty action on the part
OH
is going TO be accomplished in this country in the
war against insects. the active workers must not
be hampcrcd by unscicntiiic officials. When a
commission has one ton of Paris green, forty ten
poundcr squrts and a pair Of buckskin trousers
on hand il is no time 10 abolish IT,