4 
daily for weevils and infested squares and bolls, which should be 
immersed in crude oil. After such collection for ten days, the trap 
plants should be uprooted and burned immediately with the aid of 
crude oil. 
The suggestion has been made at various times that grazing the cot- 
ton fields with cattle is in some cases equivalent to destruction in the 
way that has been suggested. However, in many parts of Texas there 
are not sufficient cattle to accomplish the work, and, moreover, in very 
many fields the cattle, by disseminating Johnson grass and other plant 
pests, would undoubtedly do more harm than good. At the same time, 
the most thorough grazing always leaves a few green sprouts or leaves, 
upon which weevils may feed, and of course leaves the stalks standing, 
so that the process of leafing, for the benefit of the weevils, may con- 
tinue indefinitely. Where the conditions of the fields allow it and the 
supply of cattle is sufficient, grazing the fields should be practiced, but 
it is not likely that this can generally be the case in Texas. 
DIFFICULTIES. 
The Department of Agriculture understands that there are some dif- 
ficulties in the way of a universal following of the recommendations 
given in this circular. The principal ones are the almost universal 
hope for a top crop and in the labor conditions consequent from the 
universal tenant system of producing the staple. These difficulties are 
increased by the general scarcity of labor in the South, which is becom- 
ing more and more a serious problem in raising cotton. 
Planters in infested localities must understand that with the presence 
of the weevil there is no longer any hope of a top crop. It is true that 
after considerable cotton has matured and after the plants have applied 
their energy to the formation of seeds and lint, fall rains often stimu- 
late the production of a great number of squares. Many planters are 
misled by this into the hope of gathering a large top crop. The joints 
of the plant are short and the squares are formed rapidly and close 
together. Though weevils may have been exceedingly numerous in the 
fields, the presence of this abundance of food causes them to. scatter 
and they are consequently temporarily somewhat less in evidence. In 
many cases blooms appear and the hope for a top crop increases. 
Nevertheless, this production of squares also contributes to the produc- 
tion of a large number of weevils late in the season and just at the 
time for their successful hibernation. As a result of this fact, great 
injury is done to the crop of the following season, with no gain what- 
ever, or a very small one, in the yield of the current season. From 
these considerations it seems plain that within the weevil territory all 
hope of a top crop must be given up and the destruction of the plants 
be practiced as early in the fall as ‘possible. 
Another important difficulty lies in the tenant system. It is usually 
