The Evening statesman. [volume] (Walla Walla, Wash.) 1903-1910, 1907-02-18
VIRUS MEANS WHEAT SAVER
Squirrels 1noeulated With Germs To
Be Turned Loose Throughout
the State.

f. PULLMAN, Feb. 1S.-The following
paper. by Or. S. B. Nelson. veterina-
rian of the Washington experiment
station, is given as an announcement
of what will be done by the station
the coming season to rid the grain
growing districts of eastern Wash
ington of the squirrel pest.
| Eight or nine years ago the dam
age caused to growing wheat by the
common ground squirrel became such
an important matter that it was taken
up by the Washington experiment sta
ton. Prof. c. V. Piper and myself
were instructed to determine, if possi-
BILE, means of Kidding the country of
this pest. After several years of work.
we had in our possession a diseOse-
producing bacillus, which, when fed
to the squirrel. would cause death
within "a hours. or less. This
virus was quite thoroughly distributed
throughout the counties of the wheat
producing sections of eastern Washing
ton and proved to be especially viru-
lent to the small squirrels; however,
not nearly so much to the large squir-
rel, it really being a question whether
or not the virus was fatal to the larger
squirrel.
Squirrel Pest Again.
In the early '9Os, the small squirrels
became so scarce that the farmers
felt that there was no longer any ne
cessity for fighting them; and conse-
in keeping the germ alive, the work
was temporarily dropped by the ex-
pertinent station. Some two years ago
however, the farmers again began to
write in their complaints relative to
the financial loss that the squirrels
were causing them, and last year the
United States department of agricul-
ture offered to cooperate with the
Washington experiment station in car
rying out the details of experiments
to be continued along the same lones
as those which the station had carried
out in previous years.
Last years work consisted of tax
ing the germ, and. by passing it
through live squirrels and also guinea
pigs. Strengthening it's virulence suf-
ficiently to make it prove fatal in a
very few hours. These experiments
We're discontinued in July and August.
after the virus had been greatly in
creased in strength. The reason for
III, tI,, 1n1 oil no
gun to hibernate. and, consequently, it
was impossible for us to obtain mate
rial to work with. But since that time,
| by passing the virus through guinea
pigs every week or two, we have been
able to keep the virus very active, and
we are expecting, as soon as the squir-
| rels appear, to rapidly pass the virus
through the squirrels, and thus get the
bacterium to it's greatest virulence;
then we shall take it into the field and
inOculate the squirrels and turn them
loose to scatter the disease.
I'VE are expecting Mr.. Stanley Pr
per- from Washington. D. c.. in a short
time, who represents the government
in this work. DR.. w. E. Ralston will do
| the detail work of the experiments for
the experiment station. 1t may be pos
| sible that we will be able to put other
experts into the field to assist in the
work. With our already achieved sue
cess in keeping the virus alive and vir-
ulent during the winter months, we
have great hopes that it will be posi-
to distribute this virus very early this
looming season, and thus save the
wheat raisers of eastern Washington
grain"