50 
The only other beetles on which it has been tested by any of my 
correspondents are certain unspecified species found on aster by 
Professor Symons, of Maryland. "In this case/' he says, "it was 
effective in killing the beetles, but one has to be so extremely careful 
not to hurt the flowers that I would hardly recommend it for prac- 
tical use." 
Experiments at Urhana. — In response to my request, made 
August 5, 1902, to the inventor and patentee of a modified form of 
the gasoline torch intended especially for insecticide work, one of his 
instruments was sent me with directions for its use, and was at 
once put into the hands of my most experienced field assistant, Mr. 
E. S. G. Titus who, with the aid of another assistant, Mr. George I. 
Reeves (both now assistants to the United States Entomologist), 
tried it at various times during the following two months on such 
kinds of injurious insects as could be found in any number at 
Urbana at that time of the year. It was further tried on a fun- 
gus parasite of the lilac leaf, and on various kinds of vegetation to 
determine the effect on the plants of an exposure suf^cient to kill the 
insects infesting them. Although sent me expressly for experi- 
mental purposes, this instrument proved to be relatively so weak in 
action that its use by us should probably be regarded as a test of 
the value of this kind of a torch rather than that of the torch 
method in general ; and it is on this account that I have kept our 
own statements separate from those made to me by others, most of 
whom seem to have worked with a more efficient apparatus. 
The results of our various trials are here given as reported to 
me by Mr. Titus at the close of his series of experiments, about 
October 20. 
"The torch is simply an ordinary 'plumber's torch' fitted with a 
two-gallon gasoline tank and a three-foot piece of rubber tubing. 
A short irc^ discharge-pipe connects the rubber tubing with the 
torch. 
"Filled the tank about half full of gasoline according to direc- 
tions. The valve in this pump was of leather and by no means 
circular in outline, and it was at first rather hard to secure even 
pumping pressure. The connections were all very dry and needed 
soaking. After an hour or so of work, cleaning the discharge- 
pipe and burner, we were able to light the latter and get a flame. 
"Under the heaviest pressure obtainable — sufficient to force 
air bubbles from the pump valve and at the cut-off in the base of 
the pump — the flame was tried at varying distances. At fifteen 
inches from the burner the heat was scarcely sufficient to singe the 
hair from the hand, but a little closer, ten to twelve inches distant. 
