UNI

OF

PLATE XIX.

An illustration in the same territory as that given in the previous picture. This has been used as a dump, and
many of the tin cans which are shown in the picture have from one to a dozen egg clusters of the gypsy moth within
them. This is one of the most difficult places to deal with as the cans and rubbish must be raked together and the
whole covered with oil and set afire. Even after this it must be closely watched, because a great many of the egg
masses of the moth will not be destroyed even by intense heat.

to the latter argument, the reader is referred to the letter of Dr. Fernald quoted on page 65. It will be noted from this that we can have no definite assurance that the parasites can be established, and even if they are we can hope for no better conditions than those of Europe, where periodical outbreaks occur which result in great loss and discomfort to the sections invaded. The only other argument against the policy of extermination, and the one which may after all be the hardest to overcome, is that sufficient appropriations cannot be obtained to pursue the policy to a successful termination.

It may be asked whether a policy of extermination is practicable. In the reports of the gypsy moth work in Massachusetts we find accounts which show that many places were entirely cleared of the insects during the campaign which was carried on from 1891 to 1900. Lessons may also be learned from other countries with different insects. For instance, the potato beetle which is such a pest in this country has been repeatedly imported into Europe, but on account of the vigilance of the authorities there the writer is not aware that it has gotten a foothold anywhere. An article in one of the bulletins. of the Department of Agriculture at Washington relates how at one time a small area in England became infested with the potato beetle. The authorities at once took the matter in hand, and by very heroic,.. and what seems to us very expensive methods also, the beetle was. exterminated in two years. Accounts of similar experiences in Germany are related, and one man told the writer that in his boyhood days a colony was found in the neighborhood in which he lived. The authorities at once took charge of the matter and offered the school children a sum of money for bringing in the beetles. In this way, and with other methods which were used, the beetle was entirely exterminated in a very short time.

THE APPROPRIATION NEEDED FOR ANOTHER YEAR'S CAMPAIGN.

On the recommendation of Supt. Kirkland, committees representing the Rhode Island Horticultural Society and the League of Im

provement Societies in Rhode Island are planning to ask for an appropriation of $25,000 for the work. As this will undoubtedly seem to a great many an excessively large sum, it may not be out of the way in this report to give some of the reasons for such an increase of appropriations over that of last year.

The appropriation of $5,100, made at the close of the session of the General Assembly last spring, was fairly adequate for a policy of thorough suppression in the territory which was then known to be infested with the insect. It was entirely inadequate for the area which was found to be infested when the work was taken up, and while by rigid economy a larger territory than that originally known was gone over, it may be said that the work was scarcely more than sufficient to check the insect. The funds also lasted only until the first of August. After that the State has only provided money for educational work and for furnishing tools and materials to co-operate with the United States, which has supplied nearly all the funds

since that time.

Another year a territory three times as large, and perhaps more, must be gone over, and the work should be much more thoroughly done than was possible this year. As the work increases in thoroughness it will become more and more exacting and the best men will have to be obtained, and this will necessitate slightly higher wages. This need of men who are of good character, and who will take pains to acquaint themselves with the work and to be conscientious and thorough in its execution, can not be overestimated. Inexperienced or careless men will often overlook a sufficient number of insects which, when allowed to propagate, will produce enough caterpillars to seriously injure the neighboring trees or spread the insect another year. Several foremen will also be necessary, and these must have a thorough knowledge of handling men and of the gypsy and browntail moths, and of methods of dealing with them, together with some general entomological and botanical knowledge, in order to be able to carry out intelligently directions from the Commissioner in charge. In short, the employment of men who know the business in hand

A discarded bird house, old stove-pipe, tin can, and a piece of carpet, from a dump heap in Providence, all more or less covered with egg clusters of the gypsy moth.