Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-01-13

costing more than an elephant because he
is hard to catch harder to take care of and
Most OF the rhinOceroses come from the
tributaries of the upper Nile.
Last year the importatons of wild ami
mails into the United States were valued at
1921 ,O39. of which $23.J19 were for scientific
and educational purposes and paid no duty,
$40. $50 in duties being collected on the rest.
which were imported by circuses and pri-
vate menageres. In 1903 the wild beasts
imported were valued at 147,544, of which
s9O.5OO were for private purposes and paid
$1S,lcO in duties.
Importation of Bugs.
The government of the United States oc-
casonally imports wild beast for the zoo
at Washington. which is under the Smith
sonian Institution. but most of the animals
out there have been presented. But Uncle
Sam. through the Agricultural Department.
imports immense quantities of bugs. and
some very queer ones. One particular kind
of bug imported by the United states from
Australia has earned five or six million dol
lars every year for fifteen years and has
never received any wages. Another pug
imported from Russia saved the farmers or
Ohio and Indiana at least Ao,coooo IN the
,1ear 1ooO and the wheat-growers at large
more than two hundred million dollars a
wear for the last ten years
The government imports two kinds OF
hugs. First parasites and natural enemies
of other insects that injure grain, fruits
md reeetables. and, second, insects that
are useful because of their products or
their beneficial relations 10 cuitVd'eu
plants. .,s,,,
In the first class are perhaps thousand
spe cies but only few of them nave oeeh
Of ootable value. When | asked G. L. Mar,
Iatt the entomologist of the Agricultural
Department. who is in charge OF eNpeIi
mental field work, which foreign Dug ndu
been most useful to the people OF tle
United States, he thought While ana lheil
tt, hat no
troduced from Russia to drive out the
Uessian fly had probably accomplished the
most good, although the Australian lady
bird had been exceedingly useful
The Hessian fly. which attacks wheat
said Mr. Marlatt. has caused the farmers
of the United States an average loss OF
S5OO00 900 year for ten years In 100 II
cost the farmers of Ohio and Indiana alone
S45.O00OD0. and but for a parasite when
has kept the Hessian fly in check. the loss
to the wheat crop would be not less man
S2O0O0O coo annually. This parasite Is Il
tiny fly which was sent over by mall from
Russia some years ago. II is the natural
enemy of the Hessi4n fly aud feeds upon
IL and the latter has practically disappear
ed on account of II.
Saved the Orange Trees.
The Australian lady-bsrd,' continued
Mr.. Marlatt lis the next in Importance of
the natural history importations of the
government but it's name is misleading
for il isn't a bird at all. It's little red
beetle about a quarter Of an inch long
with black markings, and is scientifically
known as the vedalia. 1t feeds Voraclous-
" both as larvae and as a beetle upon the
white scale, curious insect from Austria
liza which settles upon the leaves, fruit ana
twigs of orange and other citrous trees,
covers itself with its own secretion Oh
white WAX and pOiSonS and kills the trees.
Fifteen years ago it was rapidly devastat-
ing the orange districts of California, when
DIR. Koebele OF the Agricultural Depart
ment was sent to Australia to discover
what was holding ii in check there. Koe-
belle is a genius of German birth, and was
once beer singer in a New York saloon.
lie used to spend his Sundays and holidays
in the country around New York. hunting
bugs. He is a natural eht1mologist, and in
some way was discovered by the late Prof.
Riley and brought TO Washington, where.
soon as he had an opportunity TO study,
he developed into one of the most expert
discoveries collectors and students of in
sects He is now in the Hawaiian Islands,
employed by the planters to protect their
crops against insect invasion.
I'm Australia Koebele discovered that
the little beetle l have described was the
greatest enemy of the white scale He col
lected a large number of them from the
trees brought them to southern California
and liberated them in the orange groves,
where they have protected the trees from
that time to this like policemen. The state
board of horticulture cultivates them and
looks after them now. They have been
shipped from here to Italy, Portugal,
Egypt and South Africa to do the same
work. and they have done 1t well
Enemy of the San Jose Scale.
THAT was the beginning of insect i'm
portation into the United States Since
then we have brought in many other varie
ties. Next in Importance perhaps is the
Asiatic lady-bird. black beetle one-eighth
of an inch long, with two red spots which
| brought from northern China in 1902 to
kill the San Jose scale which is as vicious
an enemy of apples pears. peaches p.ums
and other deciduous trees as the white
scale is of the orange, ard it works the
same way. The San Jose scale is so-called
because il was introduced into this country
at San Jose, Cal. by missionary from
China with some fancy plants he brought
over from that country, and was sent to
China by the Secretary of Agriculture to
discover whether there was any means Of
controlling it, / found the Asiatic lady
bird and sent several hundred home through
the mails. Their raticns sent with
them and they reached Washington safely
but during the winter of 1U2-1903. all died
except two. From that pair, however dur
ing the season OF 1903. bred more than
5000 beetles and lave kept breeding them
ever since. We have distributed them
throughout the southern and eastern states
where they give promise of ultimately be-
coming very important They have done
the best in Georgia The San Jose scale
has caused an average loss of $1,000 900
a year to fruit growers, and every man
who has an orchard suffers but the little
beetle will keep it down. Last summer in
one orchard in GeoI gia between 10000 and
$1,000 beetles were bred from fifty that
We're sent down from this department, and
they are all busy. The work is only be-
ginning
South African Fly.
Next in Importance is the South African
fly. 1t destroys what is known as the
black scale, which affects citrous trees. Ii
is so called because 1t produces a black
fungus which covers the trees and the
fruit 1t does not always kill the tree. but
puts II out of business. The only means
u