FOUGHT BY THE PEOPLE. 29 



Many citizens scraped off all the caterpillars that they could, 

 and killed them. The caterpillars were scraped off in masses as 

 high up as a man could reach. Some people burned them off by 

 means of a rag soaked in kerosene and tied to a pole. (Ex- 

 Selectman Crowley.) 



At the time when the gypsy-moth caterpillars were thickest in 

 this neighborhood I used to spend all my leisure time fighting 

 them, and then failed to keep them down. . . . We used to take 

 a can with a little kerosene in the bottom and pick the caterpillars 

 off into it and later bury them in the ground. In a half-hour I 

 have picked a canful off one apple tree. (Mrs. Ransom.) 



The caterpillars were of an enormous size, and would lie in clus- 

 ters on the tree trunks. "We used to scrape them off into a pail. 

 (Mrs. Charles A. Lawrence, then living at 10 Cotting Street.) 



We used to destroy the caterpillars on the fences by pouring 

 scalding water on them. We burned with kerosene those in the 

 trees. We would go out several times a day and kill them. We 

 also used to scrape them off into cans. (Mrs. A. H. Plummer, 

 14 Lawrence Street.) 



We spent hours killing caterpillars on them [street elms]. We 

 would get two quarts off at a time. Thej'^ were very large. They 

 got into every crevice and under every piece of bark. Our neigh- 

 bor across the way, Mrs. Turner, used to go out with a pail of hot 

 water and poke the caterpillars into it with a stick. My son used 

 to tie a rag soaked in kerosene around a pole and set it on fire and 

 singe them off the trunks of the trees. (F. E. Foster.) 



I put a piece of stout paper about a foot wide around the tree at 

 my place for the gypsy-moth larvfB to go under. I visited it a 

 number of days later and found the trunk of the tree under the 

 paper to be entirely covered with the insects. There were hun- 

 dreds of them. A neighbor, Mr. Button, tried a similar experi- 

 ment with a strip of carpet, with like results. (James Bean.) 



We used to take lighted candles and run them along under the 

 fence rails and scorch the eggs there. (Miss R. M. Angelbeek.) 



I had charge of this estate [Sparrell estate. Main Street], and I 

 killed a great many caterpillars by brushing them off the trees with 

 a broom and crushing them. After brushing them off the trees, I 

 would wait half an hour and then there would be just as many 

 again on the trees. I could have gathered a half -bushel of cater- 

 pillars every evening through their season. (Richard Pierce.) 



I used to burn them in the trees with torches. . . . ATe killed 

 them on fences with boiling water. (Mrs. Spinney.) 



We used to sweep them off into a dustpan and burn them, but in 

 a short time they would be as thick as ever on the tree again. . . . 



