﻿198 
  CONTAGIOUS 
  DISEASES 
  OF 
  THE 
  CHINCH-BUG. 
  

  

  and 
  cites 
  Thomas's 
  opinions 
  in 
  support 
  of 
  it. 
  He 
  quotes 
  experiments 
  made 
  

   by 
  Professor 
  Forbes 
  in 
  which 
  chinch-bugs 
  were 
  artificially 
  drenched 
  with 
  

   water 
  for 
  many 
  successive 
  days 
  without 
  effect. 
  He 
  refers 
  to 
  Forbes's 
  obser- 
  

   vations 
  on 
  the 
  bacterial 
  parasite 
  of 
  the 
  chinch-bug. 
  He 
  reports 
  finding 
  places 
  

   in 
  southeastern 
  Kansas 
  where 
  chinch-bugs 
  died 
  in 
  great 
  numbers 
  in 
  corn 
  fields, 
  

   " 
  each 
  dead 
  bug 
  being 
  covered 
  with 
  a 
  strong 
  growth 
  of 
  white 
  mould." 
  Con- 
  

   necting 
  these 
  occurrences 
  with 
  the 
  statements 
  of 
  Shinier 
  and 
  Professor 
  Forbes, 
  

   he 
  seems 
  to 
  imply 
  his 
  belief 
  in 
  the 
  contagious-disease 
  theory. 
  

  

  Professor 
  Forbes, 
  in 
  an 
  article 
  in 
  the 
  same 
  periodical 
  (Prairie 
  Farmer) 
  

   December 
  9, 
  1882, 
  refers 
  to 
  Professor 
  Popenoe's 
  article, 
  and 
  surmises 
  that 
  the 
  

   white 
  mould 
  is 
  identical 
  with 
  the 
  fungus 
  found 
  destroying 
  the 
  chinch-bugs 
  

   in 
  the 
  Jacksonville 
  corn 
  fields 
  in 
  September. 
  (See 
  p. 
  196.) 
  Professor 
  Forbes 
  

   adds 
  to 
  his 
  observations 
  on 
  the 
  phenomena 
  connected 
  with 
  this 
  fungus 
  disease, 
  

   that 
  the 
  bugs 
  are 
  imbedded 
  in 
  the 
  mould, 
  and 
  are 
  fastened 
  by 
  the 
  mould 
  to 
  

   leaves 
  and 
  stalks 
  of 
  corn. 
  

  

  Doctor 
  Riley 
  again 
  referred 
  briefly 
  to 
  the 
  matter 
  of 
  chinch-bug 
  diseases 
  by 
  

   calling 
  attention, 
  in 
  the 
  Rural 
  New 
  Yorker, 
  February 
  17, 
  1883, 
  to 
  "the 
  bac- 
  

   terial 
  and 
  fungus 
  enemies 
  of 
  the 
  chinch-bug 
  found 
  by 
  Professor 
  Forbes 
  and 
  

   Professor 
  Popenoe." 
  In 
  1883, 
  also, 
  Professor 
  Forbes 
  recalled 
  attention 
  to 
  

   his 
  observations 
  of 
  the 
  year 
  previous, 
  in 
  articles 
  and 
  abstracts 
  in 
  St. 
  Paul 
  

   and 
  Minneapolis 
  Pioneer-Press, 
  Minnesota 
  Tribune, 
  Canadian 
  Entomologist, 
  

   (Sept.), 
  and 
  American 
  Naturalist, 
  Vol. 
  xvii, 
  p. 
  1170 
  (Nov.) 
  

  

  In 
  Bulletin 
  No. 
  17, 
  Division 
  of 
  Entomology, 
  U. 
  S. 
  Department 
  of 
  Agricult- 
  

   ure 
  (1887), 
  Mr. 
  L. 
  O. 
  Howard 
  quotes 
  in 
  part 
  Dr. 
  Shimer's 
  notes; 
  gives 
  a 
  

   short 
  summary 
  of 
  Professor 
  Forbes's 
  observations, 
  as 
  presented 
  in 
  the 
  twelfth 
  

   report 
  of 
  the 
  Illinois 
  State 
  Entomologist; 
  refers 
  to 
  Dr. 
  Riley's 
  doubt 
  of 
  the 
  

   practicability 
  of 
  artificially 
  producing 
  these 
  diseases 
  to 
  any 
  successful 
  extent 
  ; 
  

   and 
  quotes 
  Professor 
  Forbes's 
  statement 
  that 
  this 
  proposed 
  remedy 
  is 
  still 
  a 
  

   theoretical 
  one 
  only. 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  Report 
  of 
  the 
  U. 
  S. 
  Commissioner 
  of 
  Agriculture 
  for 
  1887, 
  Mr. 
  Law- 
  

   rence 
  Bruner 
  (p. 
  165) 
  speaks 
  of 
  "wet 
  weather, 
  which 
  induces 
  disease 
  and 
  dis- 
  

   solution," 
  as 
  an 
  effectual 
  remedy. 
  

  

  Mr. 
  C. 
  P. 
  Gillette, 
  in 
  the 
  Prairie 
  Farmer, 
  August 
  11, 
  1888, 
  says 
  that 
  a 
  

   fungus 
  disease 
  is 
  destroying 
  millions 
  of 
  chinch-bugs 
  on 
  the 
  grounds 
  of 
  the 
  

   Iowa 
  Agricultural 
  Experiment 
  Station. 
  The 
  fungus 
  belongs 
  to 
  the 
  genus 
  

   Entomophthora. 
  

  

  Mr. 
  I. 
  A. 
  Patrick, 
  writing 
  from 
  Iola, 
  Clay 
  county, 
  Illinois, 
  to 
  the 
  Prairie 
  

   Farmer, 
  August 
  25, 
  1888, 
  Vol. 
  lx, 
  p. 
  545, 
  says, 
  that 
  about 
  July 
  8 
  or 
  10 
  he 
  

   observed 
  among 
  the 
  chinch-bugs 
  the 
  same 
  disease 
  recently 
  reported 
  (see 
  

   above) 
  by 
  C. 
  P. 
  Gillette. 
  

  

  Professor 
  Forbes, 
  in 
  an 
  address 
  delivered 
  before 
  a 
  meeting 
  of 
  farmers 
  at 
  

   Belleville, 
  Illinois, 
  September 
  11, 
  1888, 
  on 
  "The 
  Chinch-bug," 
  said: 
  "Their 
  

   [the 
  chinch-bugs] 
  bird 
  and 
  insect 
  enemies 
  are 
  insignificant, 
  but 
  they 
  are 
  sub- 
  

   ject 
  to 
  two 
  fatal 
  contagious 
  diseases, 
  one 
  of 
  them 
  now 
  apparent 
  in 
  Clinton 
  and 
  

   adjacent 
  counties." 
  

  

  