1882.] FUNGI INJURIOUS TO VEGETATION. 177 



The various species of fungi that have been here described do 

 not exhaust the list of those that are destructive pests on the farm 

 or in the garden — but it is hoped that enough has been said to 

 show that in this lowly group of plants the farmer, orchardist, and 

 gardener meet some minute and very dangerous foes. 



Mr. Spurr of Farmington. I have one question I would 

 like to ask the lecturer. He says this smut is very hurtful 

 to cows. Suppose a man has got an acre of corn which he 

 calculates to feed to his cows, and his crop is attacked with 

 smut, of course it is not all affected, and he wants to feed 

 what there is, how is he going to protect himself ? How is 

 he going to be safe in feeding that corn to his cows? I have 

 had some experience of that kind myself. I have tried to 

 get rid of the smut in the corn, tried to keep it away from 

 my stock. Every ear that was affected I endeavored to cut 

 off and drop on the ground, and leave it there, so that the 

 cows could not get it, but I have had difficulty with cows this 

 fail from that cause. 



Mr. Halsted. That is an important question. In a case 

 like that, you have to decide whether you would rather have 

 the cows or the corn. If I knew that the corn was going to 

 kill my cows, or was going to injure them so that the injury 

 would be more than the value of the corn, I should certainly 

 burn the corn. I do not know as tliat answers the question 

 fully. 



Question. Should not the gentleman have carried the 

 smut from the field, and not left it on the ground? 



Mr. Halsted. I think ^Ir. Spurr ought not to have left 

 the smut upon the ground, because it is just like sowing the 

 ripe seeds of the smut plant. As long as you leave them on 

 the ground, do not destroy them, you may reasonably expect 

 to have smutty corn. I am very glad that you are one who 

 has practised cutting off the smut. If you had gone a little 

 furtlier and burned it, it would have been still better. You 

 were not, perhaps, thorough enough in collecting the smut. 

 I feel very confident that if you had remoyed it all, you would 

 have had no trouble. The only question is, how can you re- 

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