The comet. (Johnson City, Tenn.) 1884-1916, 1914-09-10
{. To THE FARMERS
OF TENNESSEE
BY CAPT. I. f. PECK,
Commissioner of Agriculture.
FARMERS BEST FRIEND--.-BIRDS
BY w. d. HOWser, State Warden OF
Tennessee.


BY w. d. HOWser, State Warden o
Tennessee.
The farmer is inventing new mach
inery to cultivate and harvest crops
he is studying new methods of destroy
ing the noxious weed and insect pests
The United States government il
spending millions of dollars annual.
trying to help the farmer solve hi;
problem, and the farmer himself is
spending more than billion dollars
annually for labor to fight the weeds
and insects. Last year, it was esti-
mated, that the insects destroyed more
than one billion dollars worth of the
products of the farm.
The insect and the weed seed is the
ted that a robin redbreast will de-
stroy the lava of one hundred thous-
and insects in one warm spring day;
that the meadow lark destroys daily
hundreds and thousands of the worst
insect pests; and that the common
Tennessee dove will eat daily on an
average of more than five thousand
seed of our most noxious weeds.
The apple tree tent-caterpillar is
ono ~ Tho oroafact and most dacfTna-
tive pests the farmer has to contend
with, but to the yellow-billed cuckoo,
or rain crow, the tent-caterpillar is a
dainty tidbit. In May and June, when
the tent-caterpillar is defolioting fruit
trees the cuckoo is just as busy eat
ing the caterpillar.
The potato beetle is one of the far
mer's worst enemies, but to the red
breasted grosbeak, it is special dish,
and when the parent birds place their
young in a row upon the fence around
the potato patch, or field, the nasty
beetles soon disappears.
The stohache of one of our common
quails, of bob whites contains the fCl-
lowing: Cinch bugs 100, squash bugs
IL, plant lice 2,3236, grasshoppers SO,
cut worms II, army worms u, mos
quitoes 56S, potato beetles 109, white
grub 8. What would that bird have
been worth to YOU, on your f,4rm?
What would that bird and its mate
have been worth to you, lad they
reared their little brood on your farm?
The birds not only protect the or
chard, the garden, the farm, but they
also protect the health CT man and
beast by destroying the disease-carry-
ing insects.
The ordinary bull bat will eat thous-
ands of mosquitoes in one evening and
its voracious appetite is constantly
calling for more. The "Anopheles,"
or malaria spreading species of the
mosquito, is great terror to man, but
the bull bat is especially fond of them.
One bull bat in destroying these pests
is worth more than case of quinine, |
and a barrel of kerosene. Mr.. Wal
lace says: "As fever germ abater |
in a maliarial district, flock of bull
bats is .worth more than grove of
quinine trees"
What is true of the robin, the mea
dow lark, the dove and the other birds
is also true of large num-
Der of our birds. When the birds de-
crease, the insects and weeds increase
and If all the birds were destroyed, it
would be impossible for the garden
ner, the orchardist, or the farmer, with
all the inventions of the present age,
to combat the insects and the weeds.
The birds work for the farmer every
day in the year and often far into the
night They charge nothing for their
work. They do not even ask him to
pay their board. They only ask his
They only ask the farmer
the privilege of destroying his worst
and most destructive enemies.
While this is true, many farmers
make no effort whatever to protect the
birds. They will kill one of them IL
he happens to take cherry, or null
berry, or a grain of wheat or corn as
part pay for his labor. They will per-
init anyone who desires to do so, to
kill the birds or destroy their nests
and whenever he does so, If he would
stop and think for a moment, he would
know that he is failing to protect the
best workman on his garden, orchard ,
Or farm.
We have laws in this tsate that pro-
hibit the killing of non-game birds at
Ill seasons of the year and the killing I
Of game birds is absolutely in the :
hands of the farmer. 1t is necessary, ]
before men can hunt on another's i
arm, for them to secure the consent {
If the man upon whose farm they de- ]
ire to hunt. but these laws are not !
Enforced and cannot be enforced until 4
he farmer realizes the value of the {
,irds to him individually. a
Would it not be splendid idea for 7
he farmers in every community In b
his state to organize and protect their
lest friends--the birds? s
Watch babies bowels till the frosts d
IN 4. Ia