Critique on the March Number. — Kansas Fruits. — It is of no use 

 now for me to undertake to say anything in praise of Kansas fruits. Everything 

 has been said in their praise, and they deserve it all. But I have something 

 to say about insects. Messrs. Farrell thought that Mr. Hyde could not find a 

 wormy apple among the large stock in their cellar, but he did find the tracks of 

 one ; and Dr. Trimble, when he looked at the Kansas Pyramid, at Philadelphia, 

 said, " No worms here," but on a second glance exclaimed, "Ah, yes, they've got 

 them ! " as he spied a little brown dust in the eye of an apple. But perhaps, Mr. 

 Editor, your readers will say, " What are two worms ? " Not much, to be sure, 

 for all Kansas ; but if all Kansas were searched thoroughly, I think we should 

 find quite a number of twos ; and every two worms this year means two hun- 

 dred next year, and twenty thousand the next, and two millions the next, and — 

 well, I won't reckon any further, but you may be sure there'll be enough. Now, 

 if I had the ear. of every man, woman, and child in Kansas, and all new states 

 and territories where noxious insects are hardly known, the first thing I should 

 say would be, Whenever you find an apple with the mark of a worm, dig him 

 out and kill him. Don't let thei7t increase. Exterminate them. And so of the 

 whole pestilent brood of borers, caterpillars, curculios, canker-worms, maggots, 

 and all the rest of the legion. If you haven't them now, you will soon ; and if 

 you don't kill the first one you see, and the second one, and every one you see, 

 the next thing you'll know will be that they are on you like the plagues of Egypt. 

 Burn them, crush them,. suffocate them. You can accomplish more in five min- 

 utes of this work now than you can ten years hence in five months. 



The Solanum as a Decorative Plant. — Mr. Rand's article on this subject 

 introduces us to a most singular class of vegetables, many of which, though 



VOL. VII. 13 225 



