The sea coast echo., 1906-06-16
PRAIRIE DOGS.
One of the Pests of the West.

and one of the rodents shoald be forth
with dispatched to Secretary Wilson.
He will be glad to get it.
Of course, every one knows that the
gopher problem is serious one in
many parts of the West, and the rab-
bit pest has at times threatened to
devastate Australia, and even Cali
fornia. Altogether the small animals
do a great amount of damage, but
most people do not realize what its
aggregate really is. Yet in one coui--
ty of the state of Washington last
year field mice destroyed at least
half a million dollars worth Of prop
erty, while in the same time wolves
In Wyoming alone mulcted the stock
men Of $1,000,000 worth Of cattle,
while the damage from field mice, and
similar little "varmints' throughout
the United States, especially in the
West and South, amounted to many
millions.
TASK OF THE SCIENTISTS.
To cope with these pests is one Of
the most interesting tasks of the
biological survey Of the Department of
Agriculture. 1t has been working in
a quiet way for several years, and has
about come to the conclusion that al
though it is possible to trap, poison
and otherwise reduce the pests IN
many instances, the thing that is
really needed is a contagious disease
that can be bottled up in the labor
atory and distributed to do its own
work on an infinitely more effective
scale than can traps and poisons.
That there is some such disease, or
that one can be produced, the scien-
lists of the department do not doubt.
The trouble up to date has been
to find it. The biological servey is
working in conjunction with the
bureau of animal industry. Some
promising leads have been struck, put
none of them have turned out to be
lust what was wanted. For instance,
while they are working with one dis
ease now that is fatal to certain
breed of field mice, it will not touch
others, and the rats laugh at 1t ID
conscious immunity, Also there are
plenty Of contagious animal diseases
that could be turned loose on the rats,
ground squirrels, and rabbits, put as
they would kill horse just as quickly
as they would a rat, they are not
wanted.
ERNEST THOMPSON SETON'S
FIND.
Some years back the survey iost
inst the chance it has been looking
for. Ernest Thompson Seton was p
in Canada, where there was pest or
rabbits, and noticed that they were
RAPIDLY dying out. Some mysterious
disease was carrying them Oft, and 1t
was not long before the country was
almost cleared of them. He realized
that this disease might prove valuaDle
and managed to catch some sick rGb-
bits which he shipped to laboratory
In New York, but the problem was nof
iust in the biologists line, and he dld
not realize the immense importance
of II. so the secret was not grasped.
Now the biological survey is looking
out for similar occurrences, ana IL the
ppportunity offers, will make the most
of them.
There is a field mouse disease that
"a harmless to domestic animals, ana
the survey is trying hard to make II
yirulent enough to do business with
some of the larger pests. 1t promises
well. but the scientists have had TOO
many disappointments to be Dragging
in advance. They are, however, act
ually trying to reinforce the disease
and make it worse than it has proved
up to date. This is getting pretty deep
into the network of germology ana
toxic science. 1t means really preeu-
Ing up disease germs on someWhat tne
same plan that plants and animals are
now bred by the department. But
there is a hope that they may De aDle
TO do something with it. Anyhow
they are trying.
There has been a number of reports
from abroad of the wonderful things
foreign psychologists have succeeded
In doing in the line of contagious dis
eases for small animal pests, but
though cultures have been poughI
abroad and tried faithfully here, no
results have ever been obtained. Some
of the germs have proved fatal to the
animals that ate them, but the same
is true of any sort of poison that can