THE ROSE-BUG. 219 



blossom, and perhaps more attractive. They last some two 

 weeks in numbers. You will see at first a very few of them ; 

 the next day more; the next, more still; and perhaps, if there 

 comes a very hot day, you will see enormous numbers of 

 them. This last season I saw the most of them in this way. 

 By the side of my vinejard I have a piece of mowing. The 

 grass was cut one morning, and it got dry enough that day 

 to cock up and cap. The next morning, on taking off the 

 caps from the hay-cocks, we found great numbers of them on 

 the under side. They were probably living upon the foliage 

 of the grass-plants, and they did not leave while the hay was 

 wilting ; but, when it was cocked up at night, the hay was 

 probably pretty warm, and they gradually rose to the top of 

 the cocks, and collected on the under side of the caps. When 

 the caps were pulled off, it being pretty warm (at first I did 

 not notice them much) they began to fly, and went up into 

 the air, and immediately headed for the vineyard. I do not 

 know how they knew about it, but they all took that partic- 

 ular course. That was when I saw most of them, and that 

 is where I see them every year the day after I have cut the 

 grass near the vineyard. Well, there is only one remedy 

 that I know of for this insect; and that is to attack them 

 individually. It may seem like enormous labor to do it, but 

 it is not. Any man can count a million if he will onl}^ begin 

 and say, " One, two, three, four," and keep on ; but if he 

 never begins " One, two," he will never count a million, or 

 any other number. My plan of proceeding is this : the first 

 one I see I crush with the thumb and fiuger, and I continue 

 to crush every one I see during the season while they last. 

 I am at work in the vineyard all this time ; and whoever is at 

 work with me has this instruction, " Every time you see him, 

 crush him, and stop long enough to do it." But. aside from 

 that, as soon as they get to be a little more numerous, each 

 person takes a little tin cup, holding perhaps a pint, with a 

 teaspoonful of soft-soap mixed with hot water, an inch or an 

 inch and a half deep on the bottom of the cup, and goes 

 along holding this in his left hand ; and, whenever he sees a 

 bug, he gives him a shake, which causes him to drop into the 

 cup that is at once his grave. Earl}^ in the morning you 

 have to shake him pretty hard to remind him that it is 

 time to get up; a little later in the day, he will wake up 



