The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1908-11-10

received here in Honolulu in good con. |
dition. Certain of these predators, the i
Director further notes, have been dis |
tributed in canefelds in certain dis. |
triets where the cane borcr was abund |
ant and whore the predators in ques
ton may eventually become establish !
ed. The Director also records the dis |
eovery, by Mr.. Muir. of a parasitic fly !
on the larvae of borer in the Moluccas.
This latter insect, however, has not
been successfully bred for shipment as
yet. for reasons which are mentioned
| in the Directors report. AS detailed
account of the work done in connection
with cane. borer and its natural enemies
is given in the Directors annual
report (See Appendix ii, page 80,
it appears quite unnecessary for your
committee to go into further details ms
to this particular matter. 1t may be
added, however, that it has been deemed
very desirable to have Mr.. Muir return
to the Moluccas and there continue his
research work and If possible, secure
further details as to the life history
of the parasite i'm question, as well rs
perhaps discover others, so that the
undertaking may, if possible, ultimately
meet with success. In that connection,
1 u.
THAT instructions to the above effect have
been cabled to Mr.. Muir at Hongkong.
Further instructions have also been sent
to abandon temporarily the halfway
station at Hongkong, at least until such
time as the Director may receive assur-
ances that that establishment is again
necessary, it being practically useless
to maintain it as long as Mr.. Muir is
| "a al it.tlt1 nd cto
ship connection. In the meantime the
Division will keep under observation
such cane fields in the several districts
of these islands in which the predaceous
beetles above referred to have been lib
Grated. 1t should be particularly noted
that the Director has called attention
to the fact that even should these pre-
daceous insects become established, they
are more liable to suffer from the pc
riodical burning of the trash in the
, cane fields than would be suffered by
any parasite In connection with the
work done by Mr.. Muir in the Malay
Archipelago, your committee might
state, as a matter If information, that
the lack of n reliable mail service, to-
gether with interrupted and infrequent
shipping facilities, throughout the
, Dutch Indies, has caused the Division,
and Mr.. Muir in particular, much annoy
ance and anxiety, and has to some ex-
! tent hampered the work. Letters which
have been mailed to the Director via
Hongkong (the nearest and safest
route) have frequently come via India,
London and New York, taking twice the
4 time to get here. In some instances
1 packages, as well as letters, even when
: registered, have gone astray, apparently
, through the negligence of the postal
authorities in the Dutch Indies, through
whom all Mr. Muir's mail and other
matter has to be handled prior to its
arrival at Hongkong or other central
shipping ports. This quite important
e matter has already been made the sub.
I. ject of correspondence with the authori-
t ties in the Postal Union, and further
: complaints will shortly be made by your
/. committee with a view to having all
t such mail matter if possible reach its
/. destination quickly and safely. The as
n sistance and eourtesies rendered to the
n Division generally, and to Mr.. Muir in
!. particular, by the respective U. 8. Con-
! suls at Batavia and Hongkong, in con-
/. nection with mail matter, has been
a much appreciated. The same may be
y said of the General Agent of the Pacific
!. Mail Steamship Company at Hongkong,
i as regards courtesies rendered in the
o matter of insect shipments to Honolulu.
The Agricultural Institute at Hongkong
n through its officials has also rendered
!. every possible facility to both Messrs
n Terry and Muir during the period these
a gentlemen have had the use of its
= laboratory, and has also extended other
n cOurtesies which have been much ap
| ta1 INxyu
=. "Last April arrangements were mad
!, through the Director to have Mr.. Koe
a belle visit parts of Europe in search OF
~ natural enemies of the horn-fiy. Mr.
~ Koebele began his investigations in thi'
. connection about June last the expense;
~ of which are to some extent being con
=, tributed to by the Territorial Board o.
a. Agriculture and the Live Stock Breed
y ers' Association. This special worl
=. has been mentioned by the Director il
:, his report, to which reference can b.
~ made for further details.
"Througn the death of Mr.. Alexan
~ der Craw. which occurred in June last
- the Association and Experiment Station
- have sustained n serious loss. The lat
~ Mr.. Craw, as you all know, was attach
ed to the staff of the chronological
Division as consulting entomologist
> his special duties, however, being a
w Quarantine Plant Inspector under tn
v auspices of the Territorial Board o
Agriculture. During his -four year
AZ faithful service in that important of
" fetal capacity the work superintende
IN by him has been of paramount import
vs. ance, not only to the sugar planters, Blu
~ also TO the agricultural interests a
70 large. Among his numerous duties a
~ Plant Inspector he particularly safe
~ guarded the interests of the planters a
e to unnecessary importations of suga
~ cane cuttings coming from other sugar
81 growing countries. Many such impol
ID tations were necessarily destroyed b
es him which contained injurious insect
ai and other pests, which, if establishe
Sc here, would, in time, have undoubtedl
m caused serious loss to sugar plantation
'm Aside from his official duties, wherei
Dr. he displayed much efficiency as well 1
&c extraordinary tact and judgment, ii
W late Mr.. Craw was much respected /
OF all who came in contact with him, an