﻿REPORT 
  OF 
  THE 
  FIELD 
  AGENT. 
  33 
  

  

  out 
  a 
  doubt 
  has 
  proven 
  itself 
  to 
  be 
  a 
  destructive 
  agent 
  in 
  tbe 
  extermination 
  

   of 
  chinch-bugs, 
  the 
  great 
  percentage 
  of 
  favorable 
  results 
  observed 
  by 
  me 
  have 
  

   been 
  due 
  to 
  Sporotrichum 
  and 
  bacteria. 
  

  

  RESULTS 
  OF 
  FIELD 
  EXPERIMENTS. 
  

  

  A 
  little 
  more 
  than 
  90 
  per 
  cent, 
  of 
  the 
  fields 
  visited 
  have 
  either 
  shown 
  

   good 
  results 
  or 
  promised 
  them. 
  However, 
  I 
  do 
  not 
  wish 
  to 
  be 
  understood 
  

   that 
  so 
  large 
  a 
  percentage 
  proved 
  a 
  complete 
  extermination. 
  What 
  the 
  final 
  

   results 
  have 
  been, 
  I 
  am 
  unable 
  to 
  state, 
  except 
  as 
  reports 
  have 
  since 
  come 
  in 
  

   from 
  the 
  parties 
  called 
  upon. 
  Everywhere, 
  I 
  have 
  had 
  good 
  reasons 
  why 
  

   encouragement 
  should 
  be 
  taken. 
  In 
  the 
  same 
  neighborhood, 
  I 
  have 
  seen 
  

   fields 
  presenting 
  a 
  marked 
  contrast 
  ; 
  I 
  have 
  seen 
  crops 
  of 
  the 
  same 
  cereal, 
  

   with 
  the 
  same 
  soil 
  in 
  which 
  to 
  grow, 
  receiving 
  a 
  similar 
  amount 
  of 
  care 
  and 
  

   cultivation, 
  and 
  at 
  some 
  one 
  time 
  having 
  a 
  like 
  quantity 
  of 
  pests 
  to 
  injure 
  

   or 
  to 
  destroy 
  them. 
  Yet 
  I 
  have 
  seen 
  in 
  some 
  of 
  these 
  fields 
  wholesale 
  de- 
  

   struction 
  of 
  the 
  crops; 
  in 
  others, 
  a 
  fair 
  or 
  promising 
  prospect, 
  due 
  to 
  a 
  timely 
  

   use 
  of 
  one 
  or 
  of 
  both 
  the 
  infections. 
  

  

  Many 
  farmers 
  in 
  Chautauqua 
  county, 
  especially, 
  rejoice 
  that, 
  although 
  in 
  

   previous 
  years 
  they 
  "have 
  lost 
  more 
  wheat, 
  corn 
  and 
  oats 
  by 
  chinch-bugs 
  

   than 
  by 
  any 
  weather," 
  this 
  last 
  year, 
  with 
  little 
  if 
  any 
  better 
  prospects 
  than 
  

   in 
  other 
  years, 
  they 
  have 
  reaped 
  a 
  good 
  crop 
  in 
  quantity, 
  and 
  an 
  extraordi- 
  

   nary 
  crop 
  in 
  quality. 
  This 
  they 
  largely 
  attribute 
  to 
  the 
  application 
  of 
  the 
  

   infectious 
  diseases 
  sent 
  from 
  the 
  Experiment 
  Station. 
  In 
  small-grain 
  raising 
  

   districts, 
  the 
  greatest 
  confidence 
  prevails. 
  

  

  Throughout 
  the 
  season's 
  work, 
  your 
  agent 
  has 
  everywhere 
  been 
  kindly 
  re- 
  

   ceived. 
  Interested 
  parties 
  have 
  often 
  come 
  no 
  little 
  distances 
  to 
  receive 
  a 
  

   larger 
  information, 
  and 
  instructions 
  how 
  to 
  operate 
  more 
  successfully. 
  So 
  

   great 
  has 
  been 
  the 
  interest 
  manifested 
  in 
  places, 
  that 
  means 
  of 
  conveyance 
  

   have 
  been 
  placed 
  at 
  his 
  disposal 
  without 
  charge. 
  The 
  people 
  in 
  every 
  county 
  

   visited 
  have 
  shown 
  a 
  great 
  confidence 
  and 
  untiring 
  patience. 
  Many 
  not 
  suc- 
  

   ceeding 
  at 
  first 
  have 
  tried 
  again, 
  and 
  some, 
  still 
  unsuccessful, 
  have 
  tried 
  re- 
  

   peatedly. 
  Everywhere 
  have 
  been 
  met 
  expressions 
  of 
  gratitude 
  and 
  good 
  

   will, 
  and 
  but 
  very 
  few 
  have 
  had 
  a 
  word 
  of 
  unkindness. 
  

  

  SAMPLE 
  OF 
  ONE 
  WEEK'S 
  OBSERVATIONS. 
  

  

  The 
  following 
  notes 
  for 
  a 
  single 
  week 
  are 
  given 
  as 
  examples 
  of 
  my 
  daily 
  

   observations. 
  The 
  week 
  selected 
  is 
  from 
  July 
  18th 
  to 
  24th 
  inclusive: 
  

  

  D. 
  K. 
  Rankin, 
  Idana, 
  Clay 
  county. 
  In 
  the 
  wheat 
  field 
  in 
  which 
  the 
  trial 
  was 
  made, 
  

   the 
  live 
  bugs 
  had 
  been 
  numerous, 
  and 
  had 
  considerably 
  injured 
  the 
  crop. 
  The 
  in- 
  

   fected 
  bugs 
  secured 
  from 
  the 
  Station 
  were 
  covered 
  with 
  white 
  fungus. 
  The 
  weather 
  

   was 
  wet 
  during 
  the 
  first 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  experiment, 
  and 
  the 
  old 
  bugs 
  died 
  and 
  became 
  

   white 
  in 
  about 
  two 
  weeks 
  after 
  the 
  infection 
  had 
  been 
  first 
  planted. 
  Just 
  about 
  the 
  

   time 
  the 
  old 
  bugs 
  had 
  died 
  the 
  new 
  brood 
  made 
  its 
  appearance. 
  The 
  weather 
  be- 
  

   came 
  hot 
  and 
  dry. 
  Although 
  at 
  the 
  time 
  of 
  my 
  visit 
  the 
  young 
  bugs 
  had 
  not 
  died, 
  

   they 
  were 
  not 
  damaging 
  the 
  corn 
  into 
  which 
  they 
  had 
  gone 
  to 
  such 
  an 
  extent 
  as 
  

   neighboring 
  fields 
  of 
  corn 
  were 
  being 
  injured. 
  

  

  