﻿METEOROLOGICAL 
  CONDITIONS 
  AND 
  THE 
  CHINCH-BUG. 
  177 
  

  

  And 
  also, 
  referring 
  to 
  the 
  corn 
  crop, 
  p. 
  3: 
  

  

  This 
  crop 
  was 
  reported 
  in 
  our 
  last 
  month's 
  bulletin 
  as 
  in 
  fine 
  condition, 
  and 
  the 
  

   outlook 
  for 
  the 
  largest 
  crop 
  ever 
  known 
  in 
  Kansas 
  was 
  very 
  promising; 
  but 
  the 
  

   damage 
  from 
  the 
  chinch-bugs 
  and 
  the 
  lack 
  of 
  sufficient 
  rains 
  at 
  the 
  right 
  time 
  have 
  

   continued 
  to 
  lessen 
  the 
  bright 
  prospect 
  day 
  by 
  day, 
  since 
  that 
  report 
  was 
  issued. 
  

   In 
  many 
  localities 
  the 
  crop 
  is 
  a 
  total 
  failure, 
  when 
  for 
  the 
  same 
  sections 
  a 
  mouth 
  

   ago 
  the 
  condition 
  was 
  reported 
  at 
  150 
  per 
  cent, 
  as 
  compared 
  with 
  last 
  year. 
  

  

  In 
  1888 
  the 
  chinch-bug 
  reappeared 
  in 
  force 
  early 
  in 
  the 
  year. 
  In 
  the 
  May, 
  

   1888, 
  Crop 
  and 
  Weather 
  Bulletin 
  of 
  the 
  State 
  Board 
  of 
  Agriculture, 
  p. 
  4, 
  it 
  

  

  is 
  said 
  : 
  

  

  In 
  all 
  of 
  these 
  counties 
  reporting 
  light 
  rainfall, 
  crops 
  have 
  been 
  damaged 
  more 
  

   or 
  less 
  by 
  chinch-bugs, 
  but 
  from 
  some 
  unknown 
  cause, 
  probably 
  unseasonably 
  cold 
  

   weather, 
  in 
  many 
  counties 
  bugs 
  are 
  reported 
  disappearing, 
  and 
  unless 
  the 
  weather 
  

   should 
  turn 
  hot 
  and 
  continue 
  dry, 
  no 
  serious 
  damage 
  is 
  apprehended. 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  June 
  bulletin, 
  p. 
  4, 
  it 
  is 
  said: 
  

  

  Chinch-bugs 
  are 
  reported 
  in 
  nearly 
  every 
  county 
  in 
  the 
  State, 
  but 
  50 
  counties 
  re- 
  

   port, 
  "No 
  bugs 
  to 
  hurt." 
  Others 
  report 
  "Very 
  numerous," 
  "Lots 
  of 
  them," 
  "Mill- 
  

   ions 
  of 
  them." 
  Damage 
  done 
  by 
  them 
  is 
  confined 
  chiefly 
  to 
  the 
  oats 
  crop. 
  

  

  The 
  July 
  bulletin, 
  p. 
  4, 
  says 
  : 
  

  

  Chinch-bugs 
  during 
  all 
  this 
  dry 
  weather 
  are 
  reported 
  as 
  having 
  done 
  but 
  little 
  

   damage, 
  and 
  in 
  many 
  instances 
  they 
  seem 
  to 
  be 
  disappearing 
  entirely. 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  Sixth 
  Biennial 
  Report 
  of 
  the 
  State 
  Board 
  of 
  Agriculture 
  (1887-88), 
  

   pp. 
  205-208, 
  a 
  paper 
  of 
  mine 
  on 
  "The 
  Chinch-bug" 
  contains 
  the 
  following: 
  

  

  But 
  it 
  was 
  observed 
  all 
  through 
  the 
  eastern 
  counties 
  that 
  from 
  some 
  unknown 
  

   cause 
  there 
  was 
  a 
  sudden 
  and 
  almost 
  complete 
  disappearance 
  of 
  the 
  hordes 
  of 
  

   chinch 
  bugs 
  while 
  the 
  dry 
  weather 
  of 
  April 
  and 
  May 
  (1888) 
  was 
  still 
  at 
  its 
  height. 
  

   Fields 
  of 
  wheat 
  and 
  oats 
  were 
  so 
  disastrously 
  attacked 
  that 
  their 
  owners 
  were 
  al- 
  

   ready 
  beginning 
  to 
  plow 
  them 
  under, 
  when 
  there 
  was 
  an 
  apparently 
  mysterious 
  

   annihilation 
  of 
  the 
  ravaging 
  hosts, 
  the 
  grain 
  began 
  to 
  revive, 
  and 
  the 
  farmers 
  were 
  

   able 
  to 
  reap 
  bountiful 
  crops 
  where 
  their 
  anticipations 
  had 
  foreboded 
  an 
  almost 
  total 
  

   loss. 
  

  

  The 
  years 
  1889, 
  1890 
  and 
  1891, 
  come 
  within 
  the 
  range 
  of 
  my 
  notes 
  in 
  

   this 
  report. 
  During 
  1889 
  and 
  1890, 
  the 
  State 
  was 
  comparatively 
  free 
  from 
  

   chinch-bug 
  attack. 
  In 
  1891 
  there 
  were 
  many 
  chinch-bugs, 
  though 
  they 
  did 
  

   not 
  occur 
  in 
  the 
  overwhelming 
  numbers 
  necessary 
  to 
  mark 
  the 
  year 
  as 
  one 
  of 
  

   crop 
  disaster. 
  

  

  Summing 
  up, 
  we 
  have, 
  then, 
  the 
  chinch-bugs 
  not 
  present 
  in 
  1884, 
  1885 
  ; 
  

   present 
  in 
  1886, 
  1887, 
  1888; 
  not 
  present 
  in 
  1889, 
  1890; 
  present 
  in 
  1891. 
  

  

  To 
  show 
  the 
  meteorological 
  conditions 
  obtaining 
  during 
  these 
  years, 
  I 
  pre- 
  

   sent 
  the 
  tables 
  which 
  follow, 
  compiled 
  from 
  the 
  published 
  reports 
  of 
  the 
  sta- 
  

   tions 
  named. 
  I 
  have 
  selected 
  the 
  stations 
  from 
  considerations 
  of 
  location 
  

   and 
  of 
  completeness 
  of 
  record. 
  

  

  The 
  stations 
  are 
  not 
  distributed 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  might 
  be 
  desirable, 
  but 
  the 
  incom- 
  

   pleteness 
  of 
  record, 
  or 
  at 
  least 
  of 
  published 
  record, 
  has 
  constrained 
  me 
  to 
  make 
  

   use 
  of 
  the 
  ones 
  chosen. 
  It 
  will 
  be 
  noted 
  that 
  I 
  have 
  grouped 
  the 
  stations 
  in 
  

   two 
  lots, 
  depending 
  upon 
  location. 
  Dividing 
  the 
  State 
  by 
  south 
  and 
  north 
  

  

  