WHOLE VOL. APPLIED ENTOMOLOGY HOWARD 541 



them — by means of public lectures or conferences to arouse the interest of the 

 public with regard to the work of the Society ? It seems to me that this will 

 be worth while and that we will wish to discuss it at our leisure. * * * 



With a vivid realization of the probable extent of insect damage 

 at the present time and with a nightmarish conception of possibilities 

 in the future, I have, especially during the past lo years, used every 

 good opportunity to stress the facts as I see them, either in writing 

 or in rather infrequent talks before audiences of different kinds. 



These audiences have often been either not interested in insects at 

 all or they have seen in them curious creatures to be classed with the 

 birds and wild flowers as convenient objects in nature study. To 

 such people the old-fashioned idea of the entomologist as rather a 

 trifler is still apt to hold, but, since every one must be educated, I 

 have always made the effort to combat the old idea even with people 

 who will apparently be of little use in the serious warfare that already 

 exists and is constantly growing more serious. 



Since women exert much influence in the life of the world, I have 

 not considered it inappropriate to point out that entomologists are not 

 always to be ignored, even socially. I have pointed out, for example, 

 that very many high-placed people have interested themselves in the 

 collection of insects. One of the late grand dukes of Russia, King 

 Boris of Bulgaria, the late Lord Walsingham of England, the present 

 Lord Rothschild, the late Baron Osten-Sacken of Russia and Ger- 

 many, and very many others are included among the persons who 

 not only have taken great delight in amassing collections of insects, 

 but have given certain groups serious study and have contributed 

 greatly to the true science of entomology. Baron Osten-Sacken and 

 Lord Walsingham were perhaps the most conspicuous examples of 

 the latter group. 



Aside from. European nobility, many wealthy persons have been 

 entomologists ; and the great work done by such amateurs of means as 

 the Oberthurs of France and Dr. Wifliam Barnes and Mr. B. Preston 

 Clark of the United States is abundantly recognized. 



It seems strange with all this that none of these titled or wealthy 

 persons have interested themselves especially in applied entomology. 

 I fail to remember any one of either of those classes who has con- 

 tributed toward the public welfare by studying insects from the eco- 

 nomic point of view, except possibly Miss Eleanor A. Ormerod of 

 England who, although not a person of very great wealth, carried on 

 investigations for years at her own expense and published very 

 many pamphlets, also at her own expense, for free distribution to the 

 farming classes. In the United States, where the greatest advances 



