﻿METEOROLOGICAL 
  CONDITIONS 
  AND 
  THE 
  CHINCH-BUG. 
  175 
  

  

  successfully 
  transplanted 
  to 
  boxes 
  and 
  variously 
  treated 
  with 
  water 
  for 
  10 
  days. 
  

   Some 
  selected 
  examples 
  were 
  thoroughly 
  drenched 
  every 
  day, 
  both 
  ground 
  and 
  

   stalks. 
  In 
  other 
  boxes 
  only 
  the 
  ground 
  was 
  watered. 
  In 
  still 
  others, 
  the 
  corn 
  was 
  

   sprinkled 
  every 
  day, 
  but 
  the 
  ground 
  protected, 
  and 
  the 
  remainder 
  were 
  left 
  with 
  

   only 
  sufficient 
  attention 
  to 
  keep 
  the 
  corn 
  alive. 
  During 
  the 
  time 
  for 
  which 
  these 
  

   experiments 
  were 
  continued, 
  no 
  appreciable 
  effect 
  whatever 
  was 
  produced 
  upon 
  the 
  

   bugs 
  infesting 
  the 
  stalks. 
  Those 
  where 
  the 
  corn 
  was 
  watered 
  were 
  washed 
  down 
  

   upon 
  the 
  ground 
  each 
  time, 
  but 
  soon 
  dried 
  off 
  and 
  climbed 
  up 
  the 
  stalk. 
  At 
  the 
  

   end 
  of 
  this 
  time 
  the 
  bugs 
  under 
  observation 
  all 
  commenced 
  to 
  disappear 
  indiscrim- 
  

   inately, 
  without 
  reference 
  to 
  the 
  mode 
  in 
  which 
  the 
  corn 
  had 
  been 
  treated, 
  and 
  the 
  

   experiment 
  was 
  thus 
  abruptly 
  closed. 
  Enough 
  was 
  learned, 
  however, 
  to 
  show 
  that 
  

   a 
  succession 
  of 
  heavy 
  daily 
  showers 
  for 
  more 
  than 
  a 
  week 
  would 
  have 
  no 
  apprecia- 
  

   ble 
  effect 
  upon 
  these 
  insects 
  in 
  that 
  stage. 
  The 
  weather 
  was 
  warm 
  and 
  pleasant, 
  

   and 
  the 
  conditions 
  under 
  which 
  the 
  experiments 
  were 
  carried 
  on 
  made 
  it 
  impossible 
  

   to 
  saturate 
  the 
  air. 
  Further 
  light 
  will 
  be 
  thrown 
  on 
  this 
  question 
  by 
  the 
  facts 
  de- 
  

   tailed 
  under 
  the 
  succeeding 
  section. 
  

  

  Ill 
  a 
  circular 
  from 
  the 
  office 
  of 
  the 
  State 
  Entomologist 
  of 
  Illinois, 
  entitled 
  

   "The 
  Chinch-bug 
  in 
  Illinois," 
  issued 
  September 
  10, 
  1886, 
  Professor 
  Forbes 
  

   savs 
  that 
  the 
  ocurrence 
  of 
  heavy 
  rains 
  (especially 
  of 
  cool 
  ) 
  at 
  the 
  time 
  of 
  

   hatching 
  may 
  kill 
  vast 
  numbers 
  of 
  the 
  young, 
  but 
  that 
  "rains 
  take 
  no 
  se- 
  

   rious 
  direct 
  effect 
  on 
  the 
  full-grown 
  bugs." 
  A 
  wet 
  season, 
  however, 
  may 
  pro- 
  

   mote 
  one 
  of 
  their 
  contagious 
  diseases. 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  Farmers 
  Review 
  for 
  October 
  19, 
  1887, 
  Mr. 
  G. 
  W. 
  Waters 
  notes 
  some 
  

   interesting 
  observations 
  touching 
  the 
  influence 
  of 
  moisture 
  on 
  the 
  chinch- 
  

   bug. 
  He 
  says 
  that 
  chinch-bugs 
  seek 
  winter 
  quarters 
  uniformly 
  in 
  some 
  damp 
  

   place, 
  not 
  in 
  dry 
  fodder, 
  etc. 
  He 
  believes 
  that 
  wet 
  weather 
  in 
  winter 
  or 
  an 
  

   open 
  winter 
  does 
  not 
  hurt 
  them. 
  The 
  winter 
  of 
  1881-82 
  was 
  excessively 
  

   wet 
  in 
  Illinois, 
  and 
  the 
  bugs 
  came 
  forth 
  in 
  the 
  spring 
  "by 
  the 
  bushel." 
  

   Bugs 
  immersed 
  for 
  a 
  week 
  or 
  more 
  on 
  ears 
  of 
  corn 
  in 
  fodder 
  which 
  had 
  fallen 
  

   into 
  water 
  and 
  was 
  frozen 
  over 
  with 
  ice 
  were 
  lively 
  when 
  warmed 
  by 
  the 
  sun. 
  

   One 
  lot 
  lived 
  in 
  a 
  jar 
  of 
  wet 
  earth 
  for 
  a 
  month 
  without 
  food. 
  

  

  Mr. 
  Lawrence 
  Bruner, 
  in 
  his 
  "Report 
  on 
  the 
  Season's 
  Observations 
  in 
  Ne- 
  

   braska," 
  in 
  the 
  Report 
  of 
  the 
  United 
  States 
  Commissioner 
  of 
  Agriculture 
  for 
  

   1887, 
  says 
  that 
  the 
  only 
  effectual 
  remedy 
  after 
  the 
  bugs 
  have 
  become 
  a 
  pest 
  

   is 
  wet 
  weather, 
  which 
  induces 
  disease 
  and 
  dissolution. 
  

  

  In 
  1887 
  was 
  issued 
  Bulletin 
  No. 
  17 
  of 
  the 
  Division 
  of 
  Entomology, 
  United 
  

   States 
  Department 
  of 
  Agriculture, 
  entitled 
  "The 
  Chinch-bug: 
  a 
  General 
  

   Summary 
  of 
  its 
  History, 
  Habits, 
  Enemies, 
  and 
  of 
  the 
  Remedies 
  and 
  Preven- 
  

   tatives 
  to 
  be 
  used 
  against 
  it." 
  The 
  bulletin 
  was 
  prepared 
  by 
  Mr. 
  L. 
  O. 
  How- 
  

   ard, 
  assistant 
  entomologist 
  of 
  the 
  division, 
  and 
  is 
  a 
  complete 
  review 
  of 
  the 
  

   information 
  acquired 
  up 
  to 
  date 
  of 
  publication 
  concerning 
  the 
  pest. 
  The 
  in- 
  

   fluence 
  of 
  wet 
  weather 
  on 
  the 
  chinch-bug 
  is 
  considered 
  at 
  length, 
  the 
  great 
  

   preponderance 
  of 
  opinion 
  being, 
  it 
  is 
  said, 
  that 
  it 
  is 
  unfavorable, 
  though 
  in 
  

   just 
  what 
  way 
  is 
  a 
  disputed 
  point. 
  

  

  The 
  evidence 
  so 
  far 
  presented 
  tends 
  strongly 
  to 
  establish 
  the 
  oft-repeated 
  

   assertion 
  that 
  wet 
  weather 
  periods 
  are 
  highly 
  inimical 
  to 
  the 
  chinch-bug. 
  

   Professor 
  Forbes, 
  of 
  Illinois, 
  is 
  almost 
  the 
  only 
  entomologist 
  who 
  has 
  believed 
  

  

  