•»4 TENANTS OF AN OLD FARM. 



blossom end of the apple. CJuly one egg is laid on each 

 apple, but as the mother has about fifty eggs to dispose 

 of, you may suppose that a few wide-awake and healthy 

 females can make sad havoc with a crop." 



" Ain't the same apples visited by more'n one 

 moth ?" asked Hugh. 



"Sometimes two worms will be found in one apj^le ; 

 but this is quite rare, and the fact conmionly illustrates 

 the force and wisdom of the maternal instinct that 

 directs the moth. 



" The eggs begin to hatch in about a week after the}^ 

 are laid, and the little caterpillars produced from them 

 immediately burrow into the apples, making their way 

 gradually from the eye toward the core. The caterpil- 

 lar is of a whitish color ; its head is heart-shai^ed and 

 black ; the top of the first ring or collar and of the last 

 ring is also black, and there are eight little blackish 

 dots or warts arranged in pairs on each of the other 

 rings. As the larva grows the body becomes ficsh- 

 colored, the black parts turn brown, and the dots dis- 

 appear. In the course of three Aveeks, or a little more, 

 it comes to full size, and meanwhile has burrowed to 

 the core and through the apple in various directions. 

 The larva is so small at first that its presence can 

 only be detected by the brownish powder that it 

 pushes out in eating its way through the eye. This 

 is made up of the ' castings ' or exuviie of the worm, 

 and is a sure sign of infected fruit, as it often clings 

 to the apple." 

 " True enough !'' exclainu'd Hugh. " I've often seed 



