president's address. 11 



are necessarily limited in number at present, it is very gratifying 

 to note the readiness of the State Governments and of the Uni- 

 versities to lend their experienced scientific officers to the Federal 

 Government, for the purpose of investigating important matters 

 which concern more than a single State. 



The Prickly Pear problem, too, just now is claiming the joint 

 consideration of the Governments of New South Wales and 

 Queensland; and the appointment of a Commission, comprising 

 an entomologist and a pathologist, to investigate the question, is 

 proposed. It is true that this savours somewhat of calling in the 

 doctor when the complaint has become almost chronic, whereas, 

 at an earlier stage, the matter was not beyond easy control. But 

 the existing Governments cannot be held responsible for the 

 neglect of those who had their opportunity, and neglected it. 

 The noteworthy point is the steadily increasing recognition of 

 the importance of an alliance with Science, by the Governments 

 of Australia. 



In his stimulating Presidential Address of 1908, to which I 

 have already made reference, Mr- A. H. S. Lucas pointed out 

 in a general way how Man has taken charge of the geographi- 

 cal distribution of plants and animals ; and also how, by his 

 interference with local conditions, and by his desired or un- 

 desirable introductions to the countries he has colonised, he 

 has succeeded in upsetting the approximately stable equili- 

 brium of faunas and floras which prevailed before his emer- 

 gence from the savage state. But this wholesale disturbance 

 of Nature's balance already entails retribution in the shape of 

 much effort and expense in controlling the new conditions 

 which his actions have brought about, if he is to escape penal- 

 ties which, if ignored, are inevitable and dangerous. 



To confine myself to one branch of the subject, to one class 

 only of the animal kingdom, I propose, on the present occa- 

 sion, to offer a summary of what the various civilised nations 

 are attempting to do in the way of protecting themselves from 

 evil results accruing from the wholesale disturbance of the 

 conditions under which insect-faunas formerly locally attained 



