12 
and-bag duster commonly used against the cotton worm: A pole 5 
to 8 feet long and about 2 inches in diameter is taken, and a three- 
fourths-inch hole bored through it within 6 inches of each end. 
Near each end is seeurely tacked a bag of “ 8-ounce osnaburg cloth,” 
1 foot wide and 18 inches to 2 feet long, so that the powdered poison 
may be introduced into the bags with a funnel through the holes at 
the ends of the pole. The bags are filled with undiluted Paris green, 
which is generally preferred to London purple on account of its 
quicker action, and the apparatus is carried on horse or mule back, 
through the cotton fields, dusting two or four rows at once. The 
shaking induced by the motion of the animal going at a brisk walk 
or at a trot is sufficient to dust the plants thoroughly, or the pole may 
be jarred by hand. The application is preferably made in early 
morning or late evening, when the dew is on, to cause the poison to 
adhere better to the foliage. 
From 1 to 2 pounds are required to the acre, and from 10 to 20 
acres are covered ina day. The occurrence of heavy rains may neces- 
sitate a second application, but frequently one will suffice. This 
simple apparatus, on account of its effectiveness and cheapness, is 
employed throughout the cotton belt to the general exclusion of more 
complicated and expensive machinery. The cost frequently does not 
exceed 25 cents per acre, and the results are so satisfactory that the 
leaf worm is no longer considered a serious factor in cotton culture. 
With the patented air-blast machines for the dry distribution of 
poisons, arsenicals are diluted with 10 parts of flour, lime, or ground 
gypsum, and from 60 to 75 acres may be covered in a day by using 
relays of men and teams. Greater uniformity is secured with these 
machines in distribution of the poisons, but their cost (from $30 to 
$60) prevents their general use. 
The planter should have a good supply of poison on hand and appa- 
ratus for its application prepared in advance, since when the worm 
puts in an appearance its progress is very rapid, and a delay of a 
single day may result in material damage to the crop. 
If small garden patches are dusted with poison by this or similar 
means from bags or with hand bellows, it is advisable always to dilute 
the poison with 10 parts of fiour, or preferably lime, and for applica- 
tion to vegetables which ultimately will be used for food, as the cab- 
bage, 1 ounce of the poison should be mixed with 6 pounds of flour or 
10 of lime and dusted merely enough to show evenly over the surface. 
Arsenicals should not be applied to lettuce or other vegetables the 
free leafage of which is eaten. 
Poisoned bait.—It is not always advisable or effective to apply 
arsenicals directly to the plants, and this is particularly true in rela- 
tion to the attacks of the grasshopper and of the various cutworms 
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