JULY. 299 



of more than a hundred thousand dollars annually to the 

 country. Mr. Townsend Glover, who is an entomologist of 

 considerable experience, is now at Washington, and, we be- 

 lieve, intends furnishing the future Reports of the Patent 

 Office with the history, habits and character of various de- 

 structive insects, illustrated with accurate engravings of them 

 in all their different transformations, and if his researches are 

 included in the volumes, it will give them a value they have 

 not so far obtained. Our only fear is that they will be too 

 comprehensive, and describe but one or two insects annually, 

 which will occupy a life time to include them all, or only the 

 most noxious. It will, however, be the commencement of 

 something better than we have yet had, and perhaps lead 

 eventually to the publication of the Reports we have noticed, 

 or those of similar import. 



Without knowing the habits of the insects with which we 

 have to contend, their destruction is greatly lessened, and all 

 efforts are sometimes useless. Take the curculio, for instance : 

 for a long time it was supposed these mischievous rascals 

 were not migratory, or, if so, to but a slight extent ; conse- 

 quently it was recommended by various cultivators to fence 

 them out, and hundreds of plum trees were set out, surround- 

 ed with a high board paling, and the ground paved beneath. 

 But, like other prematurely discovered methods, it ended in 

 a failure ; they scaled the walls as easily as General Scott's 

 troops scaled the walls of Chapultepec, and were as destructive 

 to the fruits inside as his men were to the poor Mexicans 

 who opposed his onward march. 



Take the cankerworm for another. Though so common 

 and very destructive in many localities, yet its habits and 

 transformations are to many persons unknown. Not but a 

 few days since we observed an individual putting a band of 

 tin around the trunks of several trees ; we eagerly inquired 

 what was the object of the application ; he replied, " to kill 

 the cankerworms :" " but how do you intend to do it," said 

 we, " they arc all up on the trees now." " Oh ! I know it ; 

 it is just what I want ; I mean to keep them there"! It 

 occurred to us at the moment that though our readers might 



