CHESTNUT BARK DISEASE. 389 



means the death of all the chestnuts in the infected regions. On 

 the other hand, there are others, like the writer, who believe 

 that there have been unusual conditions that have favored the 

 rise and spread of the disease so far, and that the crest of this 

 wave of infection is bound to be reached, and a gradual decrease 

 to follow when these conditions are changed. 



The blight has become far too prevalent and widespread to 

 show sudden improvement in a single year, yet we believe that 

 a let-up in its destructive spread was shown in the year 1912. 

 In 1911, according to all our information, blight was by far 

 more conspicuous and became more widely distributed than in 

 any previous year. This was a year of serious drought, follow- 

 ing several dry years. In the winter and spring of 1912 

 numerous rains replenished very largely the depleted supply of 

 water in the soil, so that even trees in general that had not 

 suffered seriously from any particular trouble showed decided 

 improvement in foliage and growth. This was especially true 

 of the peach, which is a very good indicator of weather con- 

 ditions. True, there was a drought period in midsummer in 

 1912, but this did not affect trees so much as it did the super- 

 ficially rooted crops. 



Now, if weather conditions have had nothing whatever to 

 do with the spread of blight, so far as increased or decreased 

 vigor of the chestnut trees is concerned, then the blight in 

 1912 should have been far more prominent, destructive, and 

 widespread than in any previous year. Yet, thirty-one out of 

 sixty-four persons answering our letter stated that the blight 

 was no worse, or even apparently better, in 1912 than in 1911. 

 If our observations and those of the persons who corroborate 

 them are true, then there is certainly some hope for the future 

 of the chestnut in Connecticut. Just what percentage of the 

 trees will survive the blight. we do not aim to predict, but we 

 certainly do not believe they are all to be exterminated. 



RELATION TO CONDITION OF HOST. 



General Statement. Some writers believe that the condition 

 of the host has had no influence whatever on the rise and spread 

 of this disease. For instance, Metcalf and Collins (37) in 1910 

 said: "A debilitated tree is no more subject to attack than a 



