144 GYPSY AND BROWN-TAIL MOTHS. [Jan. 



trees, the chances are many that more or less of caterpillars 

 will drop upon or be struck by it, and so be carried away 

 from their original home. In a locality badly infested with 

 the gypsy moth such a result is inevitable. 



In 1889, the year of the great gypsy moth outbreak in 

 Medford, the first general distribution of the insect took 

 place from this point of original infestation. The state- 

 ments of citizens vividly portray the swarming numbers of 

 caterpillars then : 



The place simply teemed with them, and I used to fairly dread 

 going down the street to the railroad station. It was like running 

 a gauntlet. I used to turn up my coat collar and run down the 

 middle of the street. One morning in particular I recall that I 

 was completely covered with caterpillars, inside my coat as well 

 as out. 



When caterpillars swarmed and spun down like this, their 

 transportation on carriages and wagons to points outside 

 Medford was at its maximum. 



The establishment of a colony of gypsy moths in outside 

 territory depended largely upon the regular trips of vehicles 

 to or from Medford. Regular traffic (i.e., constant or re- 

 curring), daily or at stated intervals, such as teaming of 

 certain sorts, trips of milkmen, market gardeners, butchers, 

 bakers and pedlers, and of junk and swill carts making 

 their rounds, between Medford and some point or points 

 outside that city, finally resulted in the carriage of cater- 

 pillars to more or less of the localities where these vehicles 

 stopped. While on a single trip enough caterpillars may 

 be carried outside to a stopping place of a wagon or to the 

 end of its route to bring about the establishment of a new 

 moth colony, this is effected more surely by successive 

 transportations of one or more individuals of the species. 

 Even if on some occasions no caterpillars are carried out, 

 the continually recurring trips back and forth of the vehicle 

 make it only a question of time when enough will be taken 

 to the outside point to establish there a new colony. 



Pleasure driving in and out or through Medford, much of 

 it, like traffic on wheels, constant and frequent between the 



