I 62 SUGAR 



a gang of these children through a field of canes that 

 has recently been cut. They search the stools of cane 

 for traces of the borer, and wherever frass or an open 

 boring is observed in the stumps a long hooked wire is 

 introduced therein, and after some manipulation the larva, 

 if present, is impaled and dragged to the surface. If this 

 is not successful, the stump is partially dug up and the 

 larva or chrysalis thus secured. This method gives 

 excellent results. The caterpillars and chrysalides are 

 kept by each individual in an old tobacco tin, and at the 

 end of the day the contents are carefully counted and 

 checked. A halfpenny apiece is paid for the caterpillars 

 or chrysalides when they are scarce, but the price 

 fluctuates. Boys provided with nets are also employed 

 to catch the adult moths. A higher price is paid for the 

 moths, which only fly during certain parts of the day. 



Small Moth Borer. 



The small moth borer has been known in the cane 

 fields for many years, and much has been written con- 

 cerning its life-history and habits. This small insect 

 has been receiving considerable attention recently in 

 Louisiana, where it has become a serious pest. It is 

 capable of completing its life-history in other plants than 

 cane, such as several species of grasses and Indian corn. 



It confines its attacks more to the cane itself, and more 

 especially during the first three months of the plant's 

 existence. 



The eggs are deposited by the female moth on the 

 young leaves as soon as they appear, and the resulting 

 larva bores its way gradually down into the centre of 

 the plant, thus destroying the growing point and causing" 

 the central shoot to wither and die. 



Older canes, especially those with a hard epidermis, 

 ire not so frequently attacked owing to the difficulty of 

 gaining an entrance into the cane. 



This pest is principally destroyed by the method 

 popularly known as cutting out. 



Gangs of East Indian children are sent through the 

 fields of young cane, and wherever a dead central shoot 

 is observed it is cut off close to the ground, split open. 



