'J 8 COLORADO POTATO-BEETLE. 



1. Always dilute the poison with at least ten times its bulk of 

 flonr. 



2. Apply it to the plants when wet with rain or dew. 



3. Never entrust its use to young or careless persons. 



4. Never use it near the house where young children resort. 



5. Apply it with a gauze bag or some other sifter, attached to 

 the end of a pole. 



6. Let the operator always keep upon the side from which the 

 wind is blowing. 



7. Do not apply it to any plant where it will come in contact 

 with the fruit. 



Beloro closing this article I wish to call the attention of agricul- 

 turists to the practicability of substituting arsenious acid, or the 

 white powdered arsenic of commerce, for the Paris-green, for the 

 destruction of noxious insects. The simple arsenic is a lighter 

 substance thau Paris green, that is more bulky for the same weight, 

 and would, therefore, go farther, pound for pound ; its white color 

 would render the extent of its application more easily visible on 

 the green foliage, aud its cost is less than one-quarter of that of 

 Paris-green, the wholesale price of the latter being about forty 

 cents a pound, whilst the price of arsenic is only about eight cents. 

 If, as is generally supposed, the efficacy of Paris-green in destroy- 

 ing insect life depends wholly upon tlie arsenic in its composition, 

 there seems to be no reason why the simpler and cheaper article 

 should not be substituted for it. This ma,tter was brought to my 

 notice by an intelligent druggist, but too late in the season to put 

 it to the test of actual experience, and I would here call attention 

 to it as a matter well worthy of future consideration and experi- 

 ment. 



It is proper to add here, that with regard to this whole matter 

 of using violent poisons to destroy insects, some judicious persons 

 take streng ground against it ; arguing that if the use of such dan- 

 gerous substances becomes common, they will almost unavoidably 

 fall into the hands of some young and careless persons, and that 

 some valuable lives will be lost. The argument is a weighty one, 

 and shows the necessity of great caution in the use of such arti- 

 cles, if not their total abandonment. It is my desire, in this re- 

 port, to state, as far as possible, all the known facts bearing upon 

 the case, and then leave it to the judgment of each one to deter- 

 mine for himself whether to use them or not. 



