Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1912-11-07
A Quarantine on New England
Christmas Trees.
The Government Moves TO Check the
Spread of Brown-Tail and Gypsy
MOths-Pests stiIl Centred In
This Part Of Country.
The Washington correspondence OF the

Dc placed uuder quarantine In New Eng
land. Next Wednesday morning a group
of State officials and others from the
New England States will assemble at
the Department Of Agriculture and SOL
EMMY discuss whether not only the
Christmas tree. but all other forest prod
ucts likely to harbor the eggs of the
gypsy moth shall be shipped from one
place to another. unless first officially
inspected by agents of the Government.
similar quarantine aEalns. the brown
tail moth is proposed and hearing on
this will follow the other.
Action will he taken under new pro.
vision in the Agricultural bill which au-
thorizes the Secretary Of Agriculture tn
quarantine any State, Territory or dis
| trirt Of the United States or arv por-
tion thereof. when he shall determine
the fact that II dangerous plant disease
or insect nfestaton. new to or not there
| fore widely prevalent or distributed
within and throughout the United States,
exists therein. The gypsy and the brown
| tail moth. surprising AS IL NAV seem. still
| enjoy the distinction of not having p,ead
all over thc country. as the elm leaf
| beetle has. For many ycara their habitat
startling with Massachusetts. has been
| the New England States and they still
! are confined to that area
MOTHS SPREAD WITH THE WIND.
/ the reason IS said to be the interesting
one that the spread OF the moths do
I ponds. to n great extent. uDon the gem
eral direction of the wind when they
/ ar" fixing. The moths appear In summer.
when southrrly or southwesterly winds
are prevalent. with the cheerful result
that although the pests have invaded
| Connecticut and Rhode Island, their
movement as a whole has been toward
the northern States of Maine. New
| Hampshire and Vermont. The eggs of
III" gypsy moth. the department, linds.
| may be Transported or Christmas trees
| and gree,.s, living trees and shrubs or
! on forest products, such as cord wood
lumber telephone poles railroad ties.
etc. Th" brpwntal makes speciality
| OF fruit and deciduous trees. thereby
sparing tn" "vorgrecns but playing havoc
| with some species Of ornamental and
shade trees. like tie oak and the elm.
RAILROADS ARE HELPING OUT.
The evident purpose of the department
To- quarantine parts of New England
against these two pests is not quite so
sensational as it sounds. for. thanks to
| the wise cooperation of the railroads.
an unofficial quarantine has been in
| operation for long time Through IN
| arrangement with the Office of d. NJ
Rogers. the agent of the United States
in Boston. the railroads nave instruct ed
local accents to refuse shipment to the
articles named above unless they had
been duly inspected. but the whole sys-
ten. although Il has worked fairly Well.
has hccn informal 1t is now proposed TO
max, II official and to impose the penalty
of the law for any shipment of n forest
product which does not hear n Govern
meni certificate Of its frcedori from
moth eggs How disastrous little care
lessness easily could become was recent
~ illustrated IN The case of a fine private
estat" in lonoX, away up in the Berk-
shics, where the moth had never ap-
pcarcd, y thriving colony OF gypses was
discovered on This estate. and investiga-
ton disclosed that undoubtedly the
eggs had been imported in a shipment
of trees or plants made by the Boston
park department.,
If the proposed quarantine is establish
issue regulations providing for the in
specton of material To be shipped ont
of tho quarantined area which is liable
! to trars0ort the insects. The shipment
of Christma, trees ana Christmas gr, ems
out of tie nuar1ntncl area probably
will he prohibited altogether except in
so far rs il may be possible to inspect
them,
RANGE or THE. GYPSY MOTH AREA.
The gypsy moth area over which the
quarantine VIII extend probably will
cover the following territory:
Maine. All towns bounded on tho so,tl,
by the Atlantic Ocean. as far east and
including as u boundary the following
towns on the east ana north. George
town. Wcstport. l:dgccomh. Damaris-
Gotta, Nobleboro. New Castle. Alma,
Whitefield, Chelsea. Pittston. Dresden
Richmond. Bowdoin, Webster. Lewiston,
Auburn. Poland Casco, RAYMOND. Wind
ham, Standish, Lmington. Cornish. Por-
ter and the New Hampshire iino OH
the west
New Hampshire All territory in Now
Hampshire bounded by the Atlantic
Ocean and the Maine line on the east,
tonboro, Meredith, New Hampton Hill,
Danbury. Wilmot. Salisbury. Warner,
Iiennekcr, flllsboro. Antrim. Hancock,
Dublin. Troy, Richmond and Winchester
on the'north and west and by the Mas
sachusetts line on the south,
Massachusetts. All territory bounded
by the New Hampshire line on the north
by the towns of Warwick. Orange.
.Athol, Petersham. Barre. Oakham. Spen-
Ger Sturbridge. Charlton and Dudley on
tho west; Webster. the Rhode Island
line and the towns Of Swansea. Reho-
both, Taunton. Berkeley. Lakevillc. Ro-
chester. Acushnet. New Bedford. Marion
and the Atlantic Ocean on the east; and
also the towns OF Lenox, Stockbridge
and Grcat harrington in western Massa-
chusetts
Rhode Island The following towns In
Rhode Island. Burrillvile. Glocester,
Woonsocket, Smithheld. Cumberland,
Lincoln. Pawtucket, North Providence,
East Providence. Johnston, Cranston,
Warwick. Darlington. Warren. North
Kingston. Portsmouth and Bristol
Connecticut, Stbnington and Wailing-
ford.
HROWN-TAlI. MOTH QUARANTINE,
II II IL determined to establish a quar-
antins against the brown-tail moth the
following territory will probably be In
cluded:
Maine All towns south and including
tho towns mentioned. Robinston. Char
iotte, Cooper. Plantation KIN. Wesley,
Plantation XxxI.. Plantation xxx.
D0Veroaux PlantatiOns XVIII ky