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THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY 



iV of an acre, after the grass thereon had been poisoned with the 

 arsenate of soda spray (strength given above) at the rate of sixty gal- 

 lons per acre. The animal cropped freely upon this without any ill 

 effect. This poisoning of the grass was repeated twice thereafter, and 

 after allowing her to remain several days in the inclosure after the third 

 spraying, she was removed, to all appearances in even better condition 

 than at the beginning of the experiment. 



It is only from an actual test like this that one is justified in mak- 



Fig. 12. Mites on a Grasshopper. 



ing a statement and even in this case we qualify it by reminding the 

 farmer that carelessness with the mixture might cause a fatal accident. 

 Nevertheless it is evident that, properly used as directed against grass- 

 hoppers, no such severe tests as above would arise. 



Many will remember a legal case in a western state where a smelt- 

 ing company was sued by a stock owner on the ground that the latter's 

 pasturage was poisoned by arsenic coming from the smelters and the 

 consequent death of the stock. The interesting point of this suit was 

 the fact that the loss did not occur until after several months' feeding 

 on the grass claimed to be poisoned. 



An obstacle met with by the farmers in a practical application of 

 this method is the difficulty they experience in obtaining arsenate of 

 soda in sufficient quantity, and at reasonable cost, from the country 

 druggist at the time when it is most needed. The most effective time 

 to spray, and also the most economical, is shortly after the " hoppers " 

 hatch, and long before they obtain wings, and the average farmer is not 

 far-sighted enough to lay in a supply of the poison before hand. It is 



