Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-08-26
Temperate Zone.

A FTER the scorching heat spell Of
"A this Summer believe more than
ever with that teacher Of mine VINO al
wsys smoke of the "so-called temperate
zone" 1t ought, he said, to be called
the incorporate zone.
Two winters ago we had one OF tne
coolest in the history of the country;
thir Summer we have one of the hot
test. Nowhere in the tropics, the real
tronics. Is such terrific heat to De
found, Only ct sea and on lew
deserts. where no shade Whatever -
possible. do temperatures such as are
mn up on q Summer afternoon on the
asphalt Of q washington street occur
between Capricorn and Cancer
The average high Temperatures OF
Jungle are around 90. This, OF course,
does not mean that q steamy jungle at
90 degrees actually feels any cooler
than a washington los. Your dlsconl-
fort may easily be extreme under either
circumstance. though the chances are
that our hot clothing and restless ac-
tivity give us the worst OF the bargain.
So old Sol is TO blame for It all. NOW,
gratefully. we think that the sphere
of the world Is fitting. Our hemisphere
will soon be at the equinox. Inc
ecorehing sun rays cannot get ct US 70
lash at us as in July or early August.
we thank heaven that nothing goes on
forever, and we wonder at the careless
ARRANGEMENT of the polar system that
allows such discomfort.
yet, thinking Of the sun, we seldom
consider what that heavenly BODY
really ia celestial bonfire with
tongues of flame q million miles IN
length shooting from its surface.
It is astonishing, therefore. that the
natural temperatures on the earth
never get above one hundred and
twenty-five or thirty In the shade.
Astonishing, too, in what q marrow
temperature range we humans are abe
to live.
and though 1t Is one million times
almost nothing about It. Why, for In
stance, doesn't 1t burn out? II 1t were
merely matter OF burning up, it should
have been reduced to Q celestial cinder
The only substance that shoots of
quantities of energy and yet does not
swiftly burn out Is radiunn, but to say
that the sun c0nnagration b radio
activity is merely 70 answer o riddle
with harder riddle.
An Insects Revenge.
Through some screen door, left open
on q Summer night, an insect entered
fitted madly around the bulb In the
center of the ceiling, and, since 1t was
not an old-fashioned candle which al
lowed it to burn itself to death, finally
the creature settled YEARLY on the cell
ing.
stinct to kill insects and snakes on
sight. SO l obeyed that impulse, and
crushed the frail dy-llke creature
which had flmy wings Of most mar
Velous pale green.
The poor harmless thing dropped IL
the floor, but it's soul, If 1t has any
reJoiced In its revenge; q bitter odoi
rested on my fingers; only long wash
ing or the perfumes Of Arabia could
sWeeten my hand again.
since Fabre was not there to tell m,
the philosophical significance of thii
fact, I had to become a PHILOSOPHERS
entonnologist myself With rank odori
generally goes rank taste; rank tastl
might well discourage birds from eatinf
up this nymph-like insect. Lucky 70
him that nature so endowed him. I
birds had their way, there would b,
no insects. A pleasant prospect? True
but IL the insect supply failed, so, too
would much OF our bird supply. Be
tween supply and demand, in the natu
raj world, there Inu, be balance. Up
set that balance, and you will soon re
pent it.
The entrance of foreign inSec
pests that come on nursery stock, ami
male and every sort of shipment
generally an upsetting of the balance
the insects increase faster than thei
natural enemies can take care of then
Sometimes there are nos natural enc
mics at hand, and then they have +
be imported from other countries, b
they bird or insects. Unfortunate.
these natural enemies often have thei
own natural enemies, too, which com
to the party unlimited, and these, to-
must be conibatad, With smaller 'fes
to bite en- and 40 on, ad infinitunl
The delicate diplomacy OF inset
fighting AS well as the hard elbow
grease. is the work Of the Bureau
Entomology, in the Department {
Agriculture. / know of no more glorJ
stained battlefield than the little, on
red-brick box of a building where u
Bureau Of Entomology Is miserab
housed There the nTst news, III
vcrd. cf h1ttles, Of new insect invasion
Us ce.jle IN. There plans INFINITE
.AA.Ticate and clever have been laid &c