The herald., 1898-03-17

tanned much damage from the cold snap.
No blight can be detected at present.
Anxiety is felt for apricots and peaches
should the cold weather continue, but
should it turn warmer the fruit crop will
be good this year.
| st. Helena.-The mountains surround
ing this place are covered with snow.
which has fallen to within mile OF
town. There was a sharp frost this
morning, which would have proved dis
astrous had 1t not been followed by
cloudy weather. Rain began falling here
this afternoon, and 1t Is hoped that the
crops in this vicinity will be benefited
thereby.
Tulare-The recent frost is said to
have done considerable damage in this
vicinity. The principal orchardists re-
port that apricots have all been killed,
and peaches, prunes and pears thinned
out considerably.
San Luis Obispo.-Several good show
ers of rain fell here today, and vegeta-
ton will be greatly benefited.
THE CATTLE QUESTION
| WASHINGTON, March 16.-The atten-
ton of the officials of the agricultural
department has already been called by
/ CdttlcIlcu anu ny oil VI eiAN w
retary Of state of California to the con-
dition of the cattle south of the quaran-
tine line, and the latter is asked If some
thing could not be done by the depart
ment in modifying the quarantine so as
to prevent their starvation. An official
of the department said:
"The cattle referred to can be sent to
any place south of the quarantine line,
or can be shipped into the northern part
of California, if the state officials will
guarantee that they will be properly
quarantined. For that matter, they also
can be sent into Nevada if the state Of
| ficials there will undertake the work of
quarantining them. The quarantine line,
| as it now exists, was made on January
| 18th, and south of it infection exists.
To permit the transit of the animals
above this line would be to endanger
| the cattle industry in the remainder OF
the state and in any other state to
which they might be transported. Our
advices are that recently there have been
good rains in that part of the state south
of the line, and the grass is growing
nicely, which gives sustenance for the
cattle. The scheme looks to me like
speculative one, and that number OF
cattlemen are anxious to dispose of their
stock"
THE SAN JOSE SCALE
WASHINGTON, March 16.-The agri-
cultural department has just issued
bulletin on the San Jose scale in 1896
81, prepared by Entomologist l.. o.
Howard. 1t is of much interest at this
time because of the recent edict of the
German government prohibiting the i'm
portation of living plants, fruits, ETC.,
because of the alleged discovery of the
scale on pears shipped from California
The present bulletin is supplemental to
one on the same subject published in
January 1895, which contained his
tory of the eastern occurrences of the
insect, down to December, 1895. Never, it
is said, in the history of economic ento-
mology in the United States, has sim
gle species of insect excited so much
interest as the San Jose scale. In the
light of what we now know, the bulletin
says, our actual knowledge of the dis
tribution of the scale in the east in the
fall of 1895 was comparatively slight. II
was then reported as occurring in twenty
states, but in comparatively few locali
ties in each, with the single exception of
New Jersey In 1S96-97 actual field in
spection in Virginia, Maryland, Illinois
Ohio and Georgia and several other
states, showed that in these states the
insect was nearly as widespread as in
New Jersey, while twelve states and the
District of Columbia have been added to
the number containing infested points.
The conditions in over thirty states and
territories are then given, including that
of California, which is as follows
"In this state the insect is, or has
been, generally distributed. The condi-
rions of climate sometimes kill it out.
and it often seems to be destroyed by
fungous disease, but neglected and i'm
properly sprayed orchards exhibit trees
in as bad a condition as can be found in
any of the orchards of Maryland or New
Jersey"