66 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL.84 



Entomological Society of Philadelphia, founded in 1859 ^"<i incor- 

 porated in 1862 (name changed to American Entomological Society 

 in 1867) decided in August, 1865, to publish short papers on popular 

 entomology for distribution among farmers and agriculturists. They 

 called the publication The Practical Entomologist and intended to 

 defray the expenses by advertisements and by private contributions. 

 The object was to send out information in popular form on insects 

 destructive or beneficial to vegetation in the United States. At the 

 start it was distril)uted gratuitously, although persons receiving it 

 were asked to pay the postage. However, the demand for copies was 

 soon found to be so great that a subscription price of 50 cents a year 

 was asked. The publication was continued for two years from Octo- 

 ber, 1865, and in all 260 quarto pages were printed and distributed 

 It was found that interest in the publication dwindled, and at the 

 end of the second volume the financial draft became so great that it 

 was discontinued. The original editors were E. T. Cresson, A. R. 

 Grote, and J. W. McAllister. With the second number it was 

 announced that B. D. Walsh would take charge of communications 

 from the western States, and on the third number his name was 

 printed as Associate Editor, As a matter of fact, the first article in 

 the first number was an excellent consideration of the Colorado 

 potato beetle, under the title " The New Potato Bug and Its Natural 

 History," by Benj. D. Walsh, M. A., and all through the two volumes 

 occur articles by Walsh which to a large extent account for its very 

 distinctive and admirable character. 



I do not know who wrote the first editorial, which is headed 

 " Introductory," but it is in this editorial that the significant sen- 

 tence occurs which we have already quoted under an earlier heading, 

 to the eflfect that the eventual control of insects will probably be the 

 result of no chemical preparations but will be based upon knowledge 

 of the history and habits of the insects. 



The two volumes abound in sound information. The contribu- 

 tions by Walsh, written in his vigorous style and indicating every- 

 where his opinion of charlatanistic recipes, lend great readability 

 to the journal even at this date. 



The magazine was. distributed at first at the rate of 8,000 copies of 

 each number, and it seems incredible, in view of the extremely valu- 

 able articles, notes and answers to correspondents which it contained, 

 that it should not have continued to receive the wide-spread support 

 of farmers and fruit-growers at the ridiculously small price of 50 

 cents a year. 



