Imperial Valley press., 1909-07-31
RAvAGES OF WEEv|L
 SOUTH'S PROBLEM Enemy to Cotton Crop That Must Be Kept Out of the
 Imperial Valley,
Pest That Came From Mexico Steadily Marching Through Southern States and Destroying the Countrys Great est Agricultural Industry-No Sure Antidote Vet Discovered.

Last spring some of the Imperial Valley farmers intending to try the experiment of growing cotton ignored all warnings against obtaining seed promiscuously and ordered cotton seed from general seed dealers. When the seed was seized and destroyed by hor- ticultural inspectors, the purchasers felt aggrieved and thought the officers were needlessly strict, but that was because they did not know the boil weevil and did not appreciate the vital importance of reducing to the min imum the chance of introduction of that pest into this region.
 In the August number of Success" Harris Dickson tells what the boil weevil is doing to the South From his story the following excerpts are taken. This destructive insect comes from Mexico, the only free list importation that enters the South MT Weevil does not masquerade as an article of con sumption, being pre- eminently a con- sumer himself The daintiest of all epicures, he eats nothing but cotton, and selects only the choicest bits. He does not injure the plant itself de- stroying only the fruit. The field grows tall and gloriously green, but when the weevil gets through with it one hundred acres may not yield a single bale.
 If Mir and Mrs. Boil Weevil were cast into the cotton patch, lonely as Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, they would immediately begin to re- pienish the earth. Starting as utter strangers in the neighborhood fight ing against poverty, prejudice, and so- cial ostracism they would rear a fam fly of some twenty nine of thirty mil lions before the frost broke up their house. keeping
 Mrs Weevil is particularly exclusive and will not crowd her young. She lays about one hundred and forty eggs and requires separate square or boil for each one. By some subtle instinct, she can tell whether another Mrs. Weevil has been to that particular boil If so she passes on. If not she pune lures the boil, deposits her egg, and proceeds to the next. This propensity makes her unpopular with the farmer, for "stung" boil produces no cotton. The boil shrivels and dies while fur nishing food for the growing worm. Later in the season, Mrs. Weevil can not be so fastidious, and lays her eggs in the first boil she comes across. The egg hatches into white worm, gradually grows larger gets hard, turns out a fine new bill, puts on wings and legs, then eats its way into the wide, wide world ready for business. If 1t be in the early spring, before squares have formed on the cotton, the young weevil subsists by sucking the buds.
 When the good old summer time is gone, MT. Weevil hldes in the bark a hedge TOW, or seeks out a knot hole in a fence rail. But the snuggest berth is the old cotton house, which stands in every field. Its crevices and crannies make ideal winter quarters. There he hibernates through the win ter--in the beetle or adult condition and requires no food Millions of them die; birds search them out; but when all misfortunes have been reck- oned with, goodly number of them survive. These generally come from
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