Waterbury evening Democrat., 1904-02-01

dUCted In the SOuthweRt-PRr rR sft eS Are to Re Imported From the Home of the weevil Nm Endeavor to De- stroy the Insect.
 The secretary of agriculture, James Wilson. has approved the plans for the cotton boil weevil investigation in the southwest. for which a special appro- priation of $25O,O has been made available, says Washington special to the St. Louis Republic.
 Secretary Wilson believes that the best method for meeting the ravages caused by the boil weevil will be to put into actual practice the facts which have been accumulated by the depart. ment during the last two years in the matter of improving cultural condi- tions, the planting of early maturing varieties Of cotton, substitution of oth- CT crops, etc. Tue plans approved, which were submitted by Dr. B. T. Galloway, chief of the bureau of plant industry, and Dr. Howard. chief of the division of entomology, embody the fol- lowing lines of investigation:
 Farmers co-opera tive demonstration work will involve the organization of farmers in Texas and adjacent states in such a way as to secure the cultiva. ton of tracts of cotton under specific instructions from the department of agriculture. Thus a definite working plan will be given to each farmer, the farmer himself to furnish the seed and fertilizers if such are required. These acres of cotton will serve as object les sons and will be planned to show the practicability of growing cotton despite the presence of the weeyil. Similar work will be carried on In Louisiana, where the weevil has not yet advanced. It Is planned to have 5000 or 10000 farmers engaged in this work.
 Breet'Ng and selection work will have fo- it's object the improvement of present varieties of cotton, with a view to making them more prolific and earlier, so as to prevent the ravages of the weevil. The work will be conduct cd on experimental farms, which will be selected with due respect to cli- matic, soil and other conditions.
 The bill making the appropriat ton di- rects the secretary to investigate other insects and diseases, and one serious malady which will receive attention is the so called cotton root rot. This work will be in the direction of secur- ing immune varieties by selection and breeding and the testing of types that already have been selected. L
 Diversihcation of crops is considered one of the most important lines of work and will. have for it's object dem onstra tion work in the direction of growing crops other than cotton and of forage crops with cotton. Diversi- ficadon farms will be secured by CO., operation with the farmers themselves. Thirteen of these farms will be locat- ed in Texas, five in Louisiana, three In Mississippi and several in other cotton growing states. t 'v
 The foregoing work will be looked after by the bureau of plant industry. The division of entomology will con tinue it's investigations on experiment farms. Thirteen farms for the growing of cotton will be located in Texas, and the investigations conducted will have for their object the determination of numerous questions relative to com batting the boil weevil, which have not yet been definitely settled. The ques- ton of the effect of fertilizers on the early maturing of cottons will be
 sidered. It Is planned that these far shall embrace about 100 acres each.
 Investigations of parasites in the original home of the wesvil will be made, the object being to introduce these parasites into Texas, with the hope of securing the destruction through them of the boil weevil In- spection of cotton products, their fumi- gation and general expenses attending the certiflcation required by state laws will be another line of work conduct ed by the entomologist.
 Investiga tions into the life history and habits of the weevil and for the general testing of poisons and machines will also be made. This work will be carried on necessarily in the boil weevil infested district. Investigations of oth- CT disease than the cotton boil weevil, including the destructive cotton boil worm, which is one of the most serious pests in several southern cotton grow ing states, will be carried on.
 The organization of the work on the cooperative demonstrat ton farms has begun under the charge of DE $. 4. Knapp, who is now in Texas.
 It DayS to advertise in the Demo-