iO The Indian Wheat and Rice Weevil. 



in Delhi and Rajpore. He was unable to find weevil anywhere in the 

 open, either on threshing floors or in standing wheat, and was informed 

 that ears of wheat, which are hung up exposed to the air, remain 

 indefinitely free from weevil, though the weevils invariably make their 

 appearance, when the grain is threshed out and stored otherwise than 

 in villao-e pits. This is somewhat similar to what has been told him by 

 Mr. R. Blechynden, Jr., viz., that the regular plan adopted by some 

 natives for preserving maize from weevil is to haug the cobs at the end 

 of bamboos and expose them to the air. 



In the bazaars were found a considerable number of different lots of 

 wheat which were quite free from weevil, and it appeared on inquiry, 

 that in each case these had recently been brought in from village pits 

 where the wheat had lain, in some eases, for years. The inquiries 

 tended to show that the town godowns have more to do with the infec- 

 tion of wheat than village granaries. In all the godowns visited weevils 

 were invariably found crawling about on the walls. But the graindealers 

 refused to believe that the weevils used the grains of wheat as the 

 depository of their eggs, and insisted that weevils come from outside in 

 June and July and eat up the wheat. They appear to have no idea 

 whatever of the natural history of the insect, and consequently deem it 

 to be of no importance to clean or protect their godowns. Evidently, 

 however, this is one of the most important things to do, as it would 

 decrease, and perhaps avert, the attack of the parent weevil at the time 

 when it is most dangerous, since, as has been already pointed out, the 

 impregnation by a few insects in May will result in a large generation 



in July. 



It is contemplated to issue, with the consent and co-operation of the 

 Agricultural Departments, a simple pamphlet, in the requisite vernacu- 

 lars, for circulation in some of the leading bazaars, explaining the 

 natural history of the weevil. 



There are two possible theories as to the way the weevil originates in 

 the wheat while it is lying in the hands of the middlemen. One is that 

 when the wheat is freshly threshed out, and also when it is taken out 

 of the village pits, it is really free from weevil, and will never develop 

 weevil unless weevils have an opportunity given them of getting at it 

 and laying their eggs in it. This would appear to be the most probable 

 hypothesis, and if it is the true one, there should be no considerable 

 difficulty in preventing the occurrence of weevil altogether by disinfect- 

 ino" the godowns, carts, boats, railway trucks, and ships as has already 

 been suggested. 



The second theory, which however would seem to be an improbable 

 one, is that grain, taken straight from the fields, though apparently 

 free from weevil, sometimes in reality contains the almost invisible 

 etres of the insect which have been laid when the grain was standinof 



