WINTER MEETING, 1877. 



69 



Tl\c first buttcvUics appear early in the season, April or May. After a brief 

 courtshi[) and honeymoon — they are too bent on mischief to let even this take 

 mucli time — the female commences the work of egg-laying. That the offense 

 is premeditated is clearly obvious in the deliberate, sauntering style in which 

 she wings her flight from jilaiit to plant. Very soon the tiny, green larva3 are 

 ready to issue, and even here they show their voracious tendencies, for they 

 not only eat their way out of the shell, but pause to devour it entire before 

 they commence to gormandize on the more appetizing cabbage leaves. After 

 this hardly a fortnight has passed by before the larva has fought its evil fight, 

 finished its course, — and just a word about this course: The larva is not con- 

 tent to feed ui)on the outside leaves. It seems to possess an instinctive knowl- 

 edge of those lighter, tender, jucier leavies about the core, towards which it at 

 once proceeds. And more, this is what most disgusts the tidy housewife, for be 

 as careful as she may, she is pretty certain to chip off several "worms" as she 

 prepares the savory cabbage for dinner, and even though harmless, Such condi- 

 ments are seldom relished. The mature larva3 now leave the cabbages and 

 seek some concealed place, under board or rail, where the wonderful suspension 

 feat is accomplished, and the insect becomes a chrysalid. In June and July 

 the second brood of butterflies appears, when the same round of mischief — 

 except that it is apt to be augmented by increased numbers — is repeated. The 

 second lot of chrysalids, however, instead of remaining a week, continue the 

 winter through. 



Thus, with the times and seasons fully before us, it is well that vre now, in 

 the interest of both table and purse, consider the 



EEMEDIES. 



As already intimated, these butterflies are lazy fliers, and may easily be taken 

 in a net and destroyed. To make a net — and, by the way, children should 

 always have these, that they may early learn to observe and study in this inter- 

 esting department of nature, — procure at a hardware store a piece of the largest 

 size wire (fig. 4), three feet long. Take this to a blacksmith shop, where, 



Figure 4* 

 with the exception of four inches at each end, it is to be bent into a circular 

 form. Now let the ends be bent at right angles to a tangent to the circle, 



(fig. 5 J, where they are attached, ''^'"^ 



these ends welded together, and 



sharpened to a point (fig. 6 ). Now 



let this point be inserted and driven 

 I firmly into a hole previously bored] 



in the end of a broom-handle (fig. 



6 ), and wo have the frame work 



complete. The bag which is to be 



fastened to the circle is made of 



musquito netting, or, better, of 

 Figures. strong musiin, and to secure more 



strength, a strip of strong factory should be bound about 

 the netting whore it encircles the wire ring, and sewed on 

 strongly with it {fig. 7). Children will not only do tliis 

 catching cheaply, but will greatly enjoy it. Ciiildren may figure 6. 



* Figures 4, 5, fi, and 7 were drawn by Mr. W. S. Iloldsworth, a member of the Junior class of 

 the MiclllJ,^aa Agriculcural CoUogc, and eugravcil by Miss S. E. Fuller of New York. 



