No. 4.] THE GYPSY MOTH. 281 



Field Director's Report. 



To the Committee on the Extermination of the Oyp$y Moth. 



Gentlemen: — It Avill be impossible, within the limited 

 space allowed to this report, to describe in detail the work 

 of the season of 1893 and its results. I shall therefore 

 make only a brief statement of the methods employed and 

 the results attained. 



Methods. 



The methods used in the extermination of the moth during 

 the year 1893 were much the same as those of the previous 

 year, with such modifications and additions as experience 

 has suo:o;ested. 



Eggs of the moth which had been deposited on trees, 

 buildings and other objects were not removed, but were 

 saturated with creosote oil or burned by a combination of 

 dilute nitric and carbolic acids. Either of these methods 

 insured the speedy destruction of the life of the eggs, which 

 were less likely to be scattered about than if they were 

 scraped from the trees. 



The imported "Raupenleim" or "insect lime " was also 

 used in banding large trees to prevent the caterpillars from 

 climbing them, but it did not prove as effectual as in 1892, 

 owing either to its poor quality or an unfavorable season. 

 It was also used as a cement in filling the cavities of infested 

 trees, thereby depriving the caterpillars of their hiding- 

 places, and for this purpose it proved superior to anything 

 heretofore used. 



In May bands of burlap were placed around these trees as 

 an artificial hiding-place for the caterpillars, and later a 

 large proportion of them were found under the bands and 

 killed. The burlaps in the outer towns were visited daily 

 and the trees were occasionall}^ looked over, both by the 

 regular men and by special inspectors. This resulted in 

 almost completely eradicating the moth from the outer towns, 

 so that in some towns no eggs were found during the fall. 



