Arizona republican., 1899-03-25
DESTRUCTIVE PESTS.
Two Insects That Have Trou bled
 American Farmers.
A Systematic Study Has Been Made Of the Chfnch Bug and the Hesstan Fly-Bulietins by the Gov
 ernment.

The two greatest insect pests known
 ceiving the careful attention of the di-
 vision of entomology of the United | States department of agriculture for
 long time. These are the chinch bug
 and the Hessian fly. The department has prepared and is about to publish
 two bulletins treating respectively of
 the two insects and suggesting Possi-
 ble remedies for checking them.
 The bulletin on the chinch bug is en-
 titled "The Chinch Bug; its probable
 origin and diffusion, it's habits and de-
 velopment, natural modes and remedial
 and preventive measures, with mention
 of the habits of an allied European spe-
 cies." The bulletin was prepared under
 the direction of the entOmolOgist of
 the department, F. NJ. Webster, ento-
 mologist of the Ohio agricultural ex-
 pertinent station. The agricultural de-
 partment has received many requests for information about the chinch bug, and the bulletin is intended 10 meet this demand. It gives many new facts concerning the life, history and dis
 tribution of the species, and the whole subject of the practical handling of its diseases, in order to assist in its de- struction, is treated at length. It says that few insects have caused such pc cuniary losses, and that no other insect native to the western hemisphere has spread its devastating hordes over wider area of country with more fatal effect to the staple grains of North America. It is widely distributed over I ! L =, l. stage. It is of gregarious habits and migrates in spring, summer and au- tumn. When and where it lays its eggs, the period of incubation, the different stages of development, the development and habits of it's young, annual genera tions and food plants, are covered by the bulletin. In addition, it treats of the influence of precipitation and tenn perature on the insect; its natural enc mics; remedial and preventive meas ures, and describes the true and false chinch bugs.
 The bulletin says that it would ap- pear that this pest first made its pres ence known in this country in North Carolina in 1783, and mentions several serious outbreaks of the bug in the west. The estimated losses from its ravages from 1850 to 1887 reach S267,- 000, ,OO0. It also says that it is believed that the losses up to 1898 amountedyto fully $33O, 900. The bulletin con tains 19 illustrations, including maps, showing areas infested by the chinch bug and the probable course of its diff fusion over North America.
 The other bulletin is entitled simply, 'eThe Hessian Fly in the United States" It was prepared under the direction of the departments entomologist by Herbert Osborn, professor of zoology and entomology at the Agricultural col lege of Ames, Ia., and contains many facts concerning the life, history, food habits and parasitic enemies of this l farm pest. The bulletin says that the Hessian fly probably ranks next to the chinch bug as the farm pest in the | United States, and that its ravages in | ether countries have long been known. It received it's name in the belief that | it had been introduced into this country l by the Hessian soldiers during the war | of the revolution.
 An account of it's original habitat, ! it's very wide distribution throughout | the wheat-growing districts of Europe | and America, and its means of distribu- ton are given in the bulletin, with de- | scriptions of the male and female in sccts, the eggs, the larval form and de- food plants natural enemies and remedies. The bulletin also con- -ains a list of all the important papers 3n the Hessian fly that have appeared . in America, and such of the foreign . of U0l1 fn ha student It is illustrated with frontis- piece, two plates and eight text figures. N. Y. Sun.