64 ASSOCIATION OF ECONOMIC ENTOMOLOGISTS. 



this trip. The report just mentioned also inchides observations on 

 fruit flies, on the "" Olinda bug" or P^uller's rose beetle {Armnigas 

 fulleri Horn), on tineids bred from cotton, on silk culture in Hawaii, 

 and on forest — principally koa {Acacia koa) — insects on Hawaii 

 and Maui. From a scientist's standpoint the last report referred to 

 is perhaps the most valuable of all. From this trip Mr. Koebele 

 returned to Honolulu April 10, 1900, where he remained some two 

 years. Inspection for insects on imported vegetation, which forms 

 so important a work upon these islands at present, was up to that time 

 either entirely neglected or j^laced in the hands of incompetents. 

 This work seems to have been attended to by Mr. Koebele personally 

 during these two years, and naturally was performed intelligently. 



LANTANA INSECTS. 



In 1899 the lantana scale {Orthezia insignis Dougl.) was discovered 

 at Wailuku, Maui, l\y Mr. Gerrit P. Wilder. This discovery seems 

 to have alarmed everybody but the ranchers, whom Mr. Koebele 

 found distributing the insect in order to kill their lantana. Know- 

 ing the perniciousness of the animal and its destructiveness in Ceylon, 

 Mr. Koebele, too, seems to have been considerably exercised over the 

 coming of this unwelcome guest. Without much delay he rushed 

 oif to Mexico in the spring of 1900. His mission there seems to have 

 had a dual nature. First, to find and introduce an enemy of 0. in- 

 signis; second, since the ranchmen are so desperately anxious to kill 

 off lantana as to place all vegetable life on the islands in jeopardy, 

 to forestall an additional miportation of this kind by* introducing 

 enemies of lantana not likely to affect other plants. 



In Mr. Koebele's absence Mr. R. C. L. Perkins performed the func- 

 tions of port inspector. Moreover, it was realized that the introduc- 

 tion of lantana insect enemies must be guided with the greatest pos- 

 sible caution, first, because of the absolute necessity of introducing 

 species that are certain to confine their attention to lantana, and sec- 

 ondly, because Mr. Koebele had discovered that most of the lantana 

 enemies in Mexico are infested with numerous jjarasites — primary, 

 secondary, and even, I believe, tertiar3^ Mr. Koebele's superlative 

 caution on the mainland had to be supplemented by a trained, care- 

 ful entomologist here. For this Avork, too, Mr. Perkins was called 

 upon, and he performed it, I believe, without remuneration. The 

 tact, wisdom, and painstaking care he disi)layed in this trying task 

 is borne out fully by the appearance of lantana everywhere at present. 



What was accomplished during that trip is little short of marvel- 

 ous. Perhaps a thousand species found on that plant in its native 

 home were bred, examined, and their possible effects in their new 

 home carefully weighed and considered. After due deliberation a 



