22, CORN. 
thin, and not of the right colour, and also are without the proper 
amount of grains, or perhaps have none at all. But presently, that 
is, towards harvest time, if there should chance to be a high wind, or 
the attack is severe, the mischief will be thoroughly noticeable, conse- 
quently on the great quantity of straw broken off (as if ‘‘laid” by the 
wind) at the grub-bitten ring just above ground-level. 
The attack sometimes is very injurious, and is widely distributed 
on the Continent, but is by no means one of frequent occurrence (at 
least to a noticeable extent) in this country. On looking over my 
Annual Reports from 1877, inclusive, up to date, I find that in 1878 
it was slightly noticed, and in 1880 it was reported from two localities, 
one near Ashford, in Kent, the other near Maldon, in Essex, and it 
was remarkably numerous at both places; but, excepting in the above- 
mentioned instances, I have no reports of its presence up to 1885, 
inclusive. In 1886, the year of the appearance (as a crop pest in this 
country) of the Hessian Fly, we had observations also of some degree 
of presence of the Sawfly ; and in 1887, the great year of Hessian Fly, 
we had also the largest amount of Corn Sawfly attack of which obser- 
vations have been sent. In 1888 there was some amount, but in the 
succeeding years there has been either no report, or none worth record, 
until in the past season some slight mention has again been sent in. 
In the case of an attack of this kind, which has a capacity of doing 
great mischief, and also (consequently on the habit of the insect of 
wintering in the very lowest part of the stubble) can be greatly kept 
in check by common agricultural measures, it may be of use to note, ~ 
as above, the date of its appearances, and to give some additional 
details of habits of the insect, and means of preventing its ravages. 
On August 2nd some very characteristic specimens of the attack 
in Wheat stems were sent me by Mr. D. D. Gibb, of Ossemsley Manor 
Farm, Lymington, Hants. The stems were pierced through the knots, 
and the joints more or less filled with the ‘‘frass”’ or dirt from the 
insect-workings, and in one stem I found that the larva (grub) had 
spun its case for wintering in, down near the ground-level. 
The grubs of this Cephus pygmaeus (like the others of the family of 
the Cephide, to which it belongs) are footless, excepting three pairs of 
very small tubercle-like feet on the fore part of the body. At the 
extremity of the tail is a projecting point, which can be drawn in or 
extended like a telescope, and this helps the maggot in its progress 
along the inside of the straw. The head is rusty-coloured, horny, and 
with strong jaws. The general colour is white or yellowish white, the 
texture fleshy, the length about half an inch, and the shape as figured 
at 4 and 5, p. 21, thickened in the part next the head. The maggot 
feeds on the soft inner portions of the straw, and after having travelled 
wholly or partly up the stem and come down again, and spun itself up 
