Jan. 2, 190S.\ J gincultural Gazette of N.S.W. 67 



cherry fruit-fly (Tri/pefa cingiilnfn), which is common in ehorrics in the 

 same districts. The climatic conditions and the neglect of orchards will not 

 furnish us with any suggestions in our work of fruit-fly destruction. I have 

 met Mr. Gilles, in charge of silk-work culture, a business that the Depart- 

 ment is introducing into the soutliern States. They supply the eggs, 

 instructions, and mulberry plants free to anyone who will take the business 

 up, and then buy the cocoons from the growers at a little above market 

 price, spin the thread in the Departmental workshops, and sell it to the silk 

 manufacturers. 



The bee culture, under Dr. Phillips, is another important branch, as there 

 are over 500,000 bee-keepers in the United States. The bacteriologist in 

 this branch would be very glad to get specimens of bee paralysis from 

 Australia, and would acknowledge and furnish reports upon any specimens 

 received; specimens of foul brood would also be interesting to him. They 

 have here a special Fairbanks' scales, which will weight from 400 lb. to V4 of 

 an ounce, and on this they are testing a hive of bees to find out the 

 ^' activities of a hive," and with regular observations, regularly recorded, 

 expect to get some interesting results. 



I spent a most interesting day in the division of Plant Pathology, where 

 Dr. Galloway sent me round to all his ofiicers; and, among others, I had a 

 very interesting time with Mr. Swingle, who is interested in the dry- 

 farming cultivation, and has travelled extensively in Asia and Northern 

 Africa. He is very much interested in our western flora and edible shrubs 

 and plants. Among other interesting questions he pointed out that it was 

 not a spineless cactus that we want in dry countries, but such a spiny one 

 that nothing will toncli it until the spines are bixrnt oif. A spineless cactus, 

 he maintains, would never hold its own in desert country; everything, from 

 the mice to the mules, would eat it out. He showed me a species (Opuntia 

 fulgida), which is such a mass of spines when young that nothing can come 

 near it ; but the spines are so thick and dry that they are like matchwood, 

 and this species grows a great quantity of fruit, that is a very valuable food 

 to stock. He is also greatly interested in the cultivation of dates in the dry 

 covuitry, and thinks that we should also be able to grow dates commercial] y^ 

 in Australia. 



In the Investigation of Plants division, Mr. Collins went into the questioji 

 of cotton and also maize, and said that some of the species obtained in the 

 arid parts of Mexico will mature in three months, and they are carrying out 

 extensive experiments in these dry-lands varieties of maize. The germina- 

 tion of seeds is a special branch of this division, and the purity of all seed". 

 sold in the United States is tested here. Miss Schofield, in charge, has al'l 

 the seeds examined under the microscope, and the foreign seeds, inei"'. 

 matter, and seeds all listed and determined. 



With Dr. True, of the same division, I had some interesting conversations 

 regarding the diseases of stock caused by native plants, and he informed ma 

 that " Loco " disease in the eastern parts of the Rocky Mountains round to 

 Arizona and Mexico, is very similar in its effects npon stock, and horses in 

 particular, to our " Darling Pea," and last year in some places as many as 

 75 per cent, of the horses in Arizona died from this disease, causerl by eatiag 

 several species of Astragulus and Argullus. Several species of wild lupins 

 (Delphirnis) also often kill large numbers of stock in the West, particularly 

 sheep. 



