102 STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



These pests of onr orchards, gardens, and farms, fare equally well with 

 the German, Italian, Hungarian, or other immigrants who land in New 

 York, and better by far than the Chinaman who attempts to break into 

 the country via San Franciso. 



On the first day of next April, it will be possible for one to remove a 

 tree from the ground in the nursery of Mr. Lipscombe of Hobart Town, 

 Tasmania, and within the period of less than five weeks plant it out here 

 in Michigan. April in Tasmania corresponds with our October, so that 

 your tree would be removed from the ground in the fall, on one side of the 

 earth, and planted out in May, spring, on the other. It will also be possi- 

 ble to take up a tree at Cape Town, South Africa, and within four weeks' 

 time plant it out in Michigan, whereas, fifty years ago, it would have 

 required months in both cases. 



Now, these are two of about the most distant points accessible to 

 transoceanic steamers, and what has been said of them may with equal 

 truth be stated of many other localities situated far inland in Europe and 

 Asia. Four to six weeks is not long for an insect to live in transit, or to 

 pass in the dormant stage during which they require no food to sustain 

 life. Furthermore, on January 20, 1889, 1 myself collected, in the vicinity 

 of Hobart Town, Tasmania, a large number of twigs and small limbs of 

 a species of eucalyptus, on which were clustered myriads of a native scale 

 insect, probably Ericoceiis eucalypti Crawford, which were being eaten by 

 the caterpillars of some moth, probably Thalpochares, and probably T. 

 coccophaga Meyrick. As carniverous caterpillars are rare objects in any 

 country, I wished to secure the adults. Placing the sections of twigs and 

 limbs with their varied inhabitants in a tight box, I took them with me to 

 Melbourne, left them at my hotel while I visited South Australia, and on 

 March 10, in San Francisco, California, turned them over to another 

 agent of the entomological division of the United States department of 

 agriculture, in good condition, so that he was able to secure the moths 

 from them, though I could as well have brought them on home with me. 



This simply illustrates the ease with which insects can, in these days 

 of rapid transit, be transported from the furthermost quarters of the 

 globe to the Mississippi valley, and not be seriously inconvenienced by 

 the journey. Asa matter of fact, only a few will be likely to survive 

 after reaching this country, but nevertheless the number of imported 

 species of insects in the United States is now very large and continually 

 increasing; and, what is still worse for us, when they are brought to our 

 country their natural enemies, by which they are to a greater or less ex- 

 tent held in check at home, are seldom brought with them. This often 

 more than counter balances the difficulty in becoming acclimated here, 

 and it frequently occurs that an insect that is little if at all destructive in 

 its native country becomes extremely so when brought over to ours. 

 Again, an insect may reach us from a foreign shore and not be recognized 

 by entomologists of this country, especially by such as are afflicted with 

 a mania for describing new species, and sometimes an old offender in 

 another country, on its discovery here, is re-christened, not only once but 

 very often several times. 



An apr illustration of this may be found in a very small thrips that has 

 for several years seriously damaged the onion crop in many localities. 

 It has not only been described two or three times, but placed in two dis- 



