The Monticellonian., 1918-05-03
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first, but It is nevertheless strictly
true, for the cinch bug is pro-German
i'll our present var, the HesSian fly is
still Hessian. and the army worm is
an ally of the German army. Our
duty OF helping TO feed our fighting
friends being paramount, that of pro-
tecting and defending the food sup
plies we produce is us essential as
their production.
AS a matter of fact. mourning the eX-
penSe of producing crops and then let
ting them fall prey to our insect en-
emies is worse than not producing
them at all, and the official entomolo-
gsts of the different states are being
modified for special service in crop
protection. These men are but hand
full, hoWever-not enough for an eff
Gent patrol-and so they are calling
upon the people for such assistance
as they can easily give by keeping
watch for the common enemy and re-
porting the first traces of his appear
ance in numbers sufficient to threat
en- serious injury.
What these field insects are capable
of in the way of crop destruction is
fairly we'll known, and what the farm
er may do for the protection of his
crops can best be intrusted to the
hands of various state entomologists,
whose business 1t is by bomb. gas and
other means to kill these allies of the
foe.
Consider two fields of corn, both "
ing next to heavily infested fields of
wheat. One is protected by circle
of oil about its borders. The other
is unprotected. The unprotected corn
is entered by the insects without hind
rance as the ripening of the wheat
deprives them of food. and large part
of the corn is destroyed as shown by
the part of the field laid bare next to
the wheat. In the other field not a hill
of corn is hurt. The road oil poured
upon the ground in line between
1t and the infested wheat catches the
bugs which seek to pass.
Millions Lost in Small Area.
BY a somewhat general use of such
methods and similar materials in
twenty-five southwestern counties of
Il middle Western state where, during
cinch bug uprising last summer,
more than 1,500 miles of barrier were
laid down between corn and infested
wheat, S1,000,000 worth of corn was
saved from destruction at .otal cost
to the owners of less than $4,000 and
of some $4,000 to the state. On the
other hand wheat, oats and corn
worth at least $13,oooooo more were
lost during the same period for lack of
sufficiently general and thoroughgoing
action.
Owing to a consequent scarcity of
feed many farmers were unable to
keep up their stock. and in four in
Tested counties. selected as Il sample
district for study in comparison with
another group of counties not infested
the number of dairy COWS fell off In
four years II per cent; beef cattle.
21.5 per cert; hogs, Il per cent and
horses, 27 per cent The total sum
of this reduction in numbers of the
live stock of the four sample counties,
due solely to the presence of the cinch
bug, was $1,053.31S. Trade, banking.
education, professional incomes and
every kind of business and civic inter
est naturally suffered from this stag
gering blow to the agriculture of the
region.
Greatest Damage to Corn.
The cinch bug does greatest damage
to corn. The adult or full-grown bug
is black and about one-eighth of an