256 REPORT UPON COTTON INSECTS. 



Upon the front wheel e, on either side, are pins, g, which act upon the lower ends h 

 of the arms i as the wheel is rotated. These arms are pivoted to plates, j, and extend 

 upward and outward, so as to pass along the sides and over the tops of the plants. 



To the upper parts of these arms, other tnbu'ar arms, k, are affixed, so that the 

 brushes J, secured thereto, may be adjusted, elevated, or lowered to the height of the 

 plants. 



These brushes are held in place by eyes or rings m. 



Now, if the canvas b be smeared with tar, or any other material to which the worms 

 will stick or adhere for a reasonable length of time, as the machine is drawn or pushed 

 forward the worms will be dislodged from the plants, and falling upon the smeared 

 surface of the canvas may easily be gathered up and destroyed. 



The machine or apparatus here shown and described is intended to be passed be- 

 tween two rows of the plants, and will not, therefore, be likely to catch all the worms 

 that may be disturbed and fall. If to such machine, however, a light frame of wire 

 rods or cane be attached to the side bars, and extending upward above the top of the 

 plants, and thence down to near the ground, and there have a frame to which can- 

 vas is affixed, two rows of plants will be operated upon at the same time, and all the 

 worms be caught ; or if two machines like that here shown be used, each traveling 

 between two rows of the plants, and by some such frame-work as here named have a 

 canvas sack or bed between the intervening two rows of plants, then one or more rows 

 may also be acted upon. 



In this arrangement of the machine or apparatus, the brushes or their substitutes 

 would have to be differently located from those here shown. Such difference of loca- 

 tion and means for operating the brushes will readily occur to any individual desiring 

 to construct a machine having these modifications. [Patent No. 95,995, dated October 

 19, 1869.] 



DESTRUCTION OF PUPAE. 



Although the collection and destruction of the pupae of Aletia at the 

 season during which the greatest damage is done would be impracticable, 

 much good could be accomplished in this way if attempted at the proper 

 time. Early in the season, while the cotton plants are small, it is an 

 easy matter to detect the presence of pupae by searching for the 

 folded leaves containing them. As already suggested, when treating 

 of the collection of larvae by hand, it doubtless would be profitable to 

 offer the negroes a prize for each pupa obtained at this time. The folded 

 leaves are so easily observed that with little care nearly every pupa in 

 a field could be collected while chopping out the cotton in the spring. 

 In the autumn many pupae could be destroyed by collecting together 

 and burning the weeds in the leaves of which the larvae have webbed 

 up. This should be done as soon as possible after the last brood webs 

 up, and before the moths emerge from the pupae state. 



DESTRUCTION OF MOTHS. 



As to the possibility of destroying a sufficient number of moths to 

 materially lessen the numbers of the worms, opinions differ greatly 

 among planters. The following extracts from our correspondence will 

 serve to show the disbelief in such remedies th at prevails. These extracts 

 are from letters from all parts of the cotton belt : 



''I haver seen fires used at night and drugs used to poison, but don't believe it ever 

 did any good, for the worm finally ate up all the cotton." 



"Efforts have been made to allure and destroy the -moths, years ago, by lights and 



