17 



that I am as great a naturalist as Audubon ! That Audubon had Bach- 

 man to write his articles, and I have (Lord save the mark !)" Browne! — 

 " Still waiting- orders. Smithsonian — no cans, no bottles, no tins, no 

 nothin'". — "Spoke to Shugart, who will see Commissioner about my 

 report." — " Off to Florida," etc. 



Through May and June he was hard at work in the field observing^ 

 sketching, and experimenting with solutions for the destruction of the 

 orange insects. An extract from an official letter to him, signed by his 

 superior officer and bearing date June 1*3, is interesting at this point. 

 After referring to what has been done and the difficulties in the way it 

 says: "But a more effectual remedy would seem to consist in covering 

 the entire tree with some glutinous fluid, which would close up the aper- 

 tures of the shells and prevent escape of the perfect insects. Blood has 

 been suggested as being both feasible and economical, preserved by salt- 

 ing, and made sufficiently dilute with water to be readily applied with a 

 syringe. Near the regions where the orange tree flourishes in Florida 

 the alligator is found in great numbers. It is well known that this rep- 

 tile abounds in blood, which could readily be taken in the winter, when 

 it is in an inactive state. This blood could be preserved in casks, etc. 



July 3, this entry : " Killed alligator. After stabbing him in the 

 neck and dividing vertebrne he still lived several hours. Not one pint 

 of blood in its whole carcass, and nearly 5 feet long — one quart to 10 

 feet; 100 alligators to 25 gallons. Absurd!" As no after mention is 

 made of this proposed remedy, and there is no reference to it in Mr. 

 Glover's published report, it doubtless did not amount to anything. 



A year after, however, when Mr. Glover had left the office, a series 

 of articles against D. J. B. appeared in a Washington paper, signed 

 with a nom de plume, and among other things this matter was touched 

 upon. While Mr. Glover would never admit that he had written the 

 articles, he never denied their authorship. They bear his unmistakable 

 ear-marks, however, and were preserved by him with other personal 

 w^ritings. As an example*of rich satire this one extract on the alligator 

 question is presented : 



I have beeu crediblj' informed by a geutleman who has had some practical experi- 

 ence in combatting his (the alligator's) obstinate disposition to shuffle off this mortal 

 coil, that, being an animal of warm and generous blood and of a highly excitable 

 temperament, he will yield the almost fabulous amount ofoneplnt of the much-desired 

 crimson fluid. One of 10 feet then will give 2 pints, and 100 of that length somewhere 

 in the neighborhood of 20 gallons. Two hundred negroes might possibly capture 100 

 alligators in a day, one being necessary to hold the head and another the tail, whilst 

 the surgical operator undertakes the pleasing task of relieving him of his claret. 

 Supposing, then, each negro to measure only 5feet in height, the account would stand 

 as follows: 1,000 feet of negroes to capture and demolish 1,000 feet of alligators, the 

 produce of which would be20 gallons of the coccus exterminating blood. Estimating, 

 then, the hii'e of each darkey at $1 a day, making $200 for 20 gallons of sanguinary 

 fluid, which might effectually syringe twentj' oran-ge trees in a grove, and, without 

 mentioning the fees of the saurian phlebotomist, you have one of the most astounding 

 14102— Bull 18 2 



