WHOLE VOL. APPLIED ENTOMOLOGY HOWARD 155 



priated by the United States Congress for representation at the expo- 

 sition in Melbourne. Init only after agreement on a quid pro quo 

 which included the sending of another salaried official of the United 

 States Department of Agriculture (F. M. Webster) to Australia to 

 make a report to the Commission on the agricultural features of the 

 exposition. 



So great an enthusiasm for natural control was aroused in Cali- 

 fornia by the success of the Australian ladybird that the State made 

 apparently no advances in her fight against insects for many years. 

 Mechanical and chemical measures were abandoned. The sul)jcct of 

 natural control held the floor. It is safe to say that a large share of 

 the loss through insects suffered by California from 1888 until, let us 

 say, 1898 was due to this prejudiced and badly based policy. 



With the disappearance of Mr. Cooper from the scene, things 

 changed, but not entirely satisfactorily. The State continued its ex- 

 plorations for parasites, and did it in an unscientific way and with 

 the help of men of insufficient scientific training. Probably the Com- 

 missioner felt himself forced to continue the policy (somewhat modi- 

 fied) on account of popular opinion, but dangerous importations were 

 made and much time and money were wasted. Visiting Sacramento, 

 I tried to show the Commissioner the danger and the waste, but the 

 work was not reorganized.* 



The situation cannot be said to have assumed a scientific phase 

 until the appointment of A. J. Cook as Commissioner of Horticulture 

 in 191 1. 



As it happened, conditions had grown so dangerous through the 

 action of the State in supporting an explorer for parasites who him- 

 self was not trained in entomology and who was unable to give a just 

 estimate of the importance of the forms that he introduced that the 

 Department of Agriculture at Washington, under Federal legislation 

 that had been enacted (1905), was about to take steps to prevent the 

 bringing in of any living insects by the State of California. One of 

 the first acts of Professor Cook, however, was to appoint Harry S. 

 Smith, a trained worker in parasites, who had been for some years 

 one of the trusted investigators of the Federal entomological service, 

 to take charge of the parasite work for California. Mr. Smith assumed 

 charge of the State Insectary at Sacramento and held this position 



' Shortly after this interview, I received at Washington, from one of the 

 traveling agents of the California Department of Agriculture, some parasitized 

 specimens of the European Enproctis auriflim. The agent had taken this insect 

 for the brown-tail moth and had sent me these parasites to show what he could 

 do for the government. This sending was dangerous, since the host insect has 

 never been found in the United States although occasionally a pest in Europe. 



