364 MINNESOTA STATE HORTICULTUEAL SOCIETY. 



today studies the economic side. The practical side is fully as im- 

 portant as to know simply what will kill an insect or check its rav- 

 ages. If he does not know this he is an entomologist without be- 

 ing an economic entomologist. You might almost call him an ex- 

 travagant entomologist instead of an economic entomologist. 



There is too great a tendency on the part of the farmer, and to 

 some extent, though not so much so, on the part of the orchardist, 

 to depreciate the advice coming from an experiment station. They 

 are too wont to say, "Oh, those chaps are full of book learning," — 

 at least that has been my experience in parts of the west. I be- 

 lieve, however, that in this locality that is a thing of the past, and 

 the orchardist and the entomologist appreciate each other's position 

 fully and learn from each other very much that is of mutual advan- 

 tage. At the same time I will admit it is one of the hardest things 

 in the world for an entomologist to put himself completely in the 

 position of an orchardist or a farmer. I believe, however, that by a 

 generous co-operation on the part of these two, excellent results 

 may be obtained. Let the farmer cultivate books more, let the en- 

 tomologist cultivate farm work more. To illustrate some of the 

 difficulties which are to be overcome by careful study, I mention 

 certain questions which all the time present themselves to the en- 

 tomologist. A certain insect attacks the grain; what is it going to 

 cost to treat the large tract of grain so as to eradicate the pest? Or, 

 is the injury caused by the insect of sufficient consideration to war- 

 rant the expenditure of material and labor? Or, is not the attack a 

 temporary one? Or, is not the remedy to be applied worse for the 

 grain than the attacks of the insect? 



The same question will apply in the case of the orchardist. Ap- 

 ples may be slightly attacked by some insect eating the surface (I 

 do not refer to the codlin moth), or a few leaves early in the season 

 may be slightly eaten or crumpled (I do not refer to the tent cater- 

 pillar) or may show evidence of being affected by some small mite. 

 The orchardist, always solicitous for his crop, writes to the econ- 

 omic entomologist to know what to do, and it is a delicate ques- 

 tion for the latter to decide just what to say. Whether to say, spray 

 at once, or whether to say the injury is not sufficient to warrant spec- 

 ial treatment, or whether to say the insects' attacks will -soon cease 

 and the tree will not be seriously affected. 



The great difficulty of the entomologist, of all scientific men in 

 fact— I will not say all but of a large number— is the desire to pub- 

 lish. This is a genuine weakness which must be overcome before 

 we make the best progress. A desire to get out something new, to 

 anticipate his fellow workers in the same field, urges many a scien- 



