9 March, 1908.] Insect Pests in Foreign Lands. 141 



bting carried on with parasites of the cotton boll weevil. We left the 

 same morning for Dallas, and arrived there at 8.30 p.m. The next morn- 

 ing was spent at the Agricultural Station, where a staff of seven entomolo- 

 gists and field agents is working at the control of the weevil by mechani- 

 cal methods, the discoverv of parasites, or the production of a hardy, or 

 early developing variety of cotton; 17,000 weevils were under observation 

 at one time this year. I visited the Agricultural Show with Professor 

 Hunter, and saw the prize stock, which included some very fine mules, 

 but only about 20 sheep. Mixed cattle and " red hogs " predominated, 

 though Berkshires were also well represented. I also visited the cotton 

 mills, where an automatic draught sucks the cotton out of the carts and 

 carries it into the store-rooms (Murrey's patent). In the evening I gave 

 the staff an address on Economic Entomology in Australia. 



On the 22nd we left for Houston, stopping at College Station where 

 the Agricultural and Technical College of Texas is situated. It con- 

 tains 600 students and a staff of about 50 masters and teachers, and is 

 run somewhat upon the lines of the Hawkesbury Agricultural College, 

 but technical work is also taught and there is a complete cotton mill with 

 looms, iron work, &c. The students do all the washing and laundr\ work 

 themselves; it was washing day when I went round with the President. 

 This college is so popular that the rooms are all occupied, and over 60 

 students were camped in tents on the campus. The college is under State 

 control, and has 800 acres of good land. We left at 4 o'clock, and 

 reached Houston at 10 p.m. Next day we visited Galveston, and saw the 

 Medical College, where such good work in dealing with mosquitoes was 

 done d'uring the yellow fever epidemic four years ago. Return- 

 ing the same afternoon we left for Victoria, but stopped on the road at 

 the invitation of the manager of the Pierce 'Ranch, one of the largest in 

 the district, where they have introduced a number of different kinds of 

 Pramah cattle from India, and crossed them with the large Texan cows. 

 These bulls are very large, handsome, quiet animals, and the cross have 

 also a very fine close hair. It is claimed that the bulls and their stock 

 are tick proof. The suggestion is that the close short hair causes the 

 larval ticks when they moult to drop off, as they have nothing to cling 

 to. Rice, cotton, lucerne, &c., are also grown on this ranch, which con- 

 sists of 70,000 acres of rich prairie country. We went on next morning 

 to Victoria, where the Department of Agriculture has a small station, 

 and after seeing the Officer- in- Charge, left for San Antonio, and arrived 

 there the same evening. The following day was spent in' arranging to 

 go on to Mexico, and Professor Hunter returned to Dallas, and Dr., 

 Howard to Washington. 



On the 26th October I left for Mexico City, via Laredo, the border 

 town, reaching mv destination at 6 a.m. on the 28th. Here my friend. 

 Mr. A. Koebele, the well-known Californian Entomologist, met me, and 

 with him I made my head-quarters at the Itiburdie Hotel. In Mexico 

 I placed myself in the hands of the Department of Fomento (Department 

 for the Promotion of Information). Professor Herrera, Chief of the 

 Entomological Branch, was away sick, and there were three "Festa days" 

 coming together at the end of the month, so nothing could be done in 

 the field for three days. The Secretary introduced me to Dr. Giandra. 

 next in charge, who engaged an interpreter, and arranged for me to go 

 down to the town of Yutapec in the Mirelas country, the chief centre of 

 the orange industry. I spent the rest of the time in learning about the 

 raw products of the country, visiting the native fruit markets, anrl. under 



