mate AI 
in civilised places where entomologists are numerous enough to 
form societies. You must remember that literally and absolutely 
in 300 millions of people there is not one man who, apart from 
our and similar Government Departments, takes any interest in 
the subject or has ever done so. The mere idea of taking an 
interest in nature is foreign to all but such peoples as the Khasis 
and Lepchas, who are born naturalists. So that any progress we 
make will be in the face of a good deal of difficulty. We shall make 
more rapid progress when the effect of the students trained by the 
Agricultural Colleges becomes more marked. In some cases, these 
men become officials and regard their training simply as an avenue 
to Government Service, forgetting it all as soon as the examination 
is over; but in other Colleges, genuine agriculturists are sending 
their sons, and these men, going back to their land and having 
local influence, will do much to advance any branch of agricultural 
knowledge, including ours. 
In addition to the work with destructive Insects, we have taken 
up work with productive Insects ; sericulture is a big industry, so is 
lac, and there are possibilities in Bee-keeping. We have studied 
sericulture less with the view of improving existing industries, 
which is the work of technical experts, than of developing new 
lines or of transferring industries to new localities. India is very 
large and some branches of sericulture are extremely localised. 
Eri silk, for instance, seems to offer possibilities in other parts of 
India than in Assam, where alone it exists. We have worked it up 
and made improvements, and are now a centre for teaching those 
who want to take it up and are able to advise as to the suitable 
localities, etc. We sell two machines (patented) for cleaning 
coccons and for spinning, and a home industry in Eri silk is 
springing up. 
In Mulberry silk, we have as yet done little but experiment, but 
our experiments are working out to lines of improvement that may 
be very valuable. In all branches of sericulture we are able to 
advise not only the private individual but the various Governments, 
and until some other organisation takes up this work, we shall 
continue to be engaged in it. 
Lac is an important article of Indian commerce produced to the 
value of over three million pounds. At present it is mainly a forest 
product, not properly grown, but collected wild in jungles. We 
have shown that it can be produced more cheaply by proper 
cultivation on trees growing on pastures and waste lands in 
