INSECTS IN RELATION TO MAN 335 



tion of their investigations, there are many other station entomologists 

 who devote themselves altogether to the practical application of en- 

 tomological knowledge, and whose work in this respect is highly impor- 

 tant, even though its influence does not extend beyond the limits of the 

 state. 



The U. S. Entomological Commission. This commission, founded 

 under a special Act of Congress in 1877 to investigate the Rocky Moun- 

 tain locust, consisted of Dr. C. V. Riley, Dr. A. S. Packard and Rev. 

 Cyrus Thomas, remained in existence until iSSi, and published five 

 reports and seven bulletins, all of lasting value. The first two reports 

 form a most elaborate monograph of the Rocky Mountain locust; the 

 third report includes important work upon the army worm and the 

 canker worm; the fourth, written by Riley, is an admirable volume on 

 the cotton worm and boll worm; and the fifth, by Packard, is a useful 

 treatise on forest and shade-tree insects. 



The U. S. Department of Agriculture. The first entomological 

 expert appointed under the general government was Townend Glover, 

 in 1854. He issued a large number of reports (1863-1877), which "are 

 storehouses of interesting and important facts which are too little used 

 by the working entomologists of to-day," as Howard says. Glover 

 prepared, moreover, a most elaborate series of illustrations of North 

 American insects, at an enormous expense of labor, out of all proportion, 

 however, to the practical value of his undertaking. 



Glover was succeeded in 1878 by Riley, whose achievements have 

 aroused international admiration. He resigned in a year, after writing 

 a report, and was succeeded by Prof. Comstock, who held office for two 

 years, during which he wrote two important volumes (published re- 

 spectively in 1880 and 1881) dealing especially with cotton, orange and 

 scale insects. His work on scale insects laid the foundation for all our 

 subsequent investigation of the subject. 



Riley, assuming the office of government entomologist, published up 

 to 1894, " 12 annual reports, 31 bulletins, 2 special reports, 6 volumes of 

 the periodical bulletin Insect Life, and a large number of circulars of 

 information." During his vigorous and enterprising administration 

 economic entomology took an immense step in advance. The life 

 histories of injurious insects were studied with extreme care and many 

 valuable improvements in insecticides and insecticide machinery were 

 made. One of the notable successes of Dr. Riley and his co-workers, 

 which has attracted an exceptional amount of public attention, was the 

 practical extermination of the fluted scale (I eery a purchasi), which 



