218 ENTOMOLOGICAL SOCIETY 



country. The latter feed for the most part upon the roots of 

 grasses and cultivated plants and do scarcely any damage in 

 forests. 



Prof. Riley said Mr. Schwarz was in error as to the small 

 amount of damage occasioned to various trees and shrubs in 

 this country, and referred to the fact that he had seen oaks and 

 lombardy poplars defoliated by the beetles over large tracts, 

 of many square miles in the Mississippi Valley. He said also 

 that in nine cases out of ten where grass lands had been 

 destroyed (and the destruction in patches of greater or less, 

 extent was of common occurrence), the injury resulted from the 

 presence of the larvae of Lachnosterna. Prof. Riley also called 

 attention again to the cutting of the petiole of leaves by Lach 

 nosterna, referred to in a former paper read before the Society, 

 and stated that the damage this season had been very much 

 less than last year. 



Dr. Fox presented a paper entitled "A Collection of Spiders 

 from Indiana, ' ' in which he gave notes on a number of the spe 

 cies recorded. He stated that quite a number of the species had 

 not before been found in that part of the United States, but that, 

 he had not as yet had time to go over the material thoroughly.* 1 



Professor Riley presented some miscellaneous notes, as follows: 



He called attention to the injury done to roses in his own and 

 in the grounds of his neighbors by a small beetle, Colaspis tristis. 



He stated that he had first noticed the injury from this in 

 sect the present year, and that the roses had been very largely 

 blighted by its attacks. The nature of the damage consisted 

 in boring or eating into the buds and partly expanded flowers. 



He stated that this experience furnished another illustration 

 of a common insect suddenly assuming a new injurious habit. 



In connection with the remarks of Professor Fernow, reported 

 above, he gave a brief account of the work of the Commission 

 in Massachusetts on Ocneria dispar. He stated that the Com 

 mission now has 150 men at work, and that Mr. Sessions, the 

 Secretary of the State Board of Agriculture, is very earnest and 

 anxious to leave nothing undone that will help in the exterm 

 ination of this threatening pest. Professor Riley also referred 



* It was Dr. Fox's intention to prepare this paper for publication, but. 

 he has not found time to do so. 



