564 Report of Entomologists of the 



and egg on tlie treated plant was destroyed ; when sixty parts of 

 water was used a few, perhaps one-fourth, escaped. Wlien twenty- 

 tive parts of water were used without turpentine ^ a few of the very 

 young leaves were injured, but the damage was so slight as to be 

 scarcely appreciable. For several days after making the applications 

 the weather was cloudy, so that applications which might otherwise 

 liave scalded the leaves were harmless." 



Some Doubtful Remedial Measures. 



Trap lights. — The use of trap lights placed in the field or garden 

 at night to attract and destroy injurious night-flying moths has been 

 occasionally recommended. In 1891-92 Mr. F. W. Mally, at that 

 time connected with the United States Department of Agriculture, 

 Division of Entomology, carried on an extensive series of experi- 

 ments in the South with the trap lights for the corn-worm moth. 

 Concerning the use of trap lights, he says:^ "Numerous and deci- 

 sive experiments with lamps for trapping boll- worm moths were 

 made. Some of these were made under the most favorable circum- 

 stances. They all proved the absolute folly of this practice among 

 planters. The moth is not attracted much at any stage of its exist- 

 ence, and whatever insects are captured are in the whole decidedly 

 beneficial. This practice, then, is a positive injury, in that it sys- 

 tematically destroys beneficial insects without accomplishing any 

 good as a recompense. The measure, so commonly practiced by 

 planters, should, in view of the decided and constant harm attend- 

 ant upon its use, be unhesitatingly condemned whenever opportu- 

 nities are presented for doing so." In a subsequent publication* 

 Mr. Mally reports even more extensive experiments and with prac- 

 tically the same results. 



Attracting cmd destroying moths hy poisoned sweets. — Mixtures 

 of vinegar and molasses or beer and molasses are frequently used 

 by entomolgists and amateurs to attracting night-flying moths for 

 the purpose of capturing them. With this fact in mind, various 

 experiments have been made with mixtures of molasses and some 

 odorous substance to which poison has been added to determine 

 whether this would be a practical method of destroying injurious 



2 The turpentine was add«d at the rate of one pint tj two gallons of oil to make the emul- 

 sion more stable. 



3 Bui. 26, U. S. Dept. of Agr., Div. of Entomology, p. 53. 



4 Bui. 29, U. S. Dept. Agrl.. Di\r. Ent. 



