WATFOED NATTJEAL HISTORY SOCIETY. XXI 



4. A Letter from Mr. J. H. James to Dr. Brett, dated Kingswood, 

 "Watford, 23rd April, 1875, on the destruction of an Oak Tree by 

 the Larvse of the Goat Moth, and on the occurrence of the Death's 

 Head Moth at Watford {Vide p. 64). 



Mr. Arthur Cottam said tliat the larvse of the goat moth usually attacked the 

 elm and willo'w — seldom the oak. They always kept to one tree, and so long as 

 it was in existence would not attack others in the neighbourhood. He had not 

 found them easy to rear beyond the chrysalis state. 



Mr. C. E. Fry stated that he had reared the death's head moth from the 

 chrysalis state, but they were usually malformed, having a distorted wing. 



The Eev. C. M. Perkins said that he had had a pear ti-ee completely eaten off by 

 the larvfe of the goat moth, and that it was blown down by the' wind. The tree was 

 eaten all round ; there were three generations in it ; none of the younger larva? 

 lived, but of the thi-ee-year-olds he reared several through the chrysalis state 

 to the perfect moth. 



Mr. J. Logan Lobley mentioned that he had had poplar and sycamore trees 

 attacked by this moth, and had lost several trees in consequence. 



Mr. Fry, having been asked to explain the process of " sugaring," said that he 

 used a composition of beer, sugar, and rum, which he smeared in patches on the 

 trees, rough-barked ti-ees being the best for the purpose. The moths became 

 quite tipsy and fell into the collecting boxes. By sugaring at dusk the capture of 

 moths continues all night, diiierent species arriving at different times. 



Mr. Cottam stated that Mr. Fry begins to sugar when the sallows are in bloom, 

 which he thought accounted much for his success. The composition should be 

 put on the leeward side of ti-ees at dusk, when the dumble-dor beetle was on 

 the wing. 



The meeting then resolved itself iato a conversazione, and 

 numerous objects, principally collected at the Field Meeting the 

 previous day, were exhibited. 



A collection of plants from Cannes, France, presented to the 

 Society this evening by the Earl of Essex, was also exhibited. 



Field Meeting, 19th JuifE, 1875. 

 Aldbuet, Ashridge Park, A2<d Berkhampstead. 



Leaving Tring Station at about three o'clock, the members, 

 thirty-two in number, went dii-ect to the village of Aldbury. 

 Here the Church, dedicated to St. John the Baptist, was first visited, 

 and its old tombs and monumental brasses were examiaed with 

 much interest. 



In the centre of the village, by the side of the pond, formed it 

 was found by surface drainage, the stocks were next noticed, still 

 remaiuing in their original position. 



Thence climbing the hill "in the way from Aldbury to Little- 

 Gaddesden, called Mimihorough,'''''^' the party entered Ashridge Park, 

 and soon arrived at the Monument — a granite column 200 feet 

 high — erected ' ' In honour of Francis, third Duke of Bridgewater, 

 'Father of Inland Navigation,' 1832." On Moneybury Hill the 

 President pointed out an old Eoman "barrow," in which he said 

 some few years ago Earl Brownlow (the present owner of Ashridge) 

 and he had found about a dozen Roman coins, some forgeries 

 of the time, and a few ancient brooches. 



*Salmon, Hist. Antiq. Herts, p. 136. 



