OUR RIVALS 131 



the storage of our crops in cellar and barn. I have 

 seen more than one man whipped by quack grass and 

 others driven from their farms by scales and moths. 



These antagonists spoil for the farmers of the 

 United States about half a billion every year, al- 

 though the amount is being gradually decreased by 

 scientific methods. The largest leakage comes from 

 those creatures whose bread-winning lines cross ours. 

 In some cases we can turn them into friends and 

 make use of them ; in other cases we may do as Lin- 

 coln did with the politicians, keep them fighting 

 among themselves. 



The sawfly is a mean little beggar that puts in its 

 work as soon as foliage begins to turn green in the 

 spring. It has found out in some way that its best 

 forage is the currant bush and the gooseberry. Its 

 eggs hatch first on the gooseberry, and if you are alert 

 you will kill them there before they hatch on the cur- 

 rant. It is not a bad plan to set a row of goose- 

 berries for every tenth row in your currant field, in 

 which case the fly will not bother much with the 

 latter. 



Being of English origin, he likes gooseberries as 

 well as the folk do over there, and he will absolutely 

 defoliate your whole garden if he has a chance. The 

 result will be not only total loss of fruit, but a de- 

 vitalizing of the bushes. If there are any left the 

 hens will take them. In fact there is not a single 

 fruit that the barn fowl likes so well as a green goose- 

 berry so look out for them. 



