70 



THE LANCASTER FARMER. 



[May, 



torrid zone to the utmost limits of polar vege- 

 tation, and from the lowest valley to the moun- 

 tainous regions of perpetual snow. ' ' And as 

 our friend. Doctor Hull, President of the Illi- 

 nois State Horticultural Society, has truly said, 

 "just in proportion as you increase improved 

 fruits, just in that proportion will fruit insects 

 increase with you. " The wonder, therefore, is 

 not that they are jiermitted to exert their bane- 

 ful influence on this fair world, but that man- 

 kind are so neglectful of efforts for their de- 

 struction. 



The Almighty gave us dominion not only 

 over the beasts "of the field, the fowls of the air 

 and the fishes of the sea, Ijut "over every creep- 

 ing thing that creepeth upon the earth," and 

 yet we allow them to become our masters. One 

 thing is certain, our duty is to overcome them 

 as we would any other evil, nor tire in our 

 eflbrts, unless we are willing to admit that in- 

 sects are more powerful than men. 



It is estimated by Prof. Riley, that the dam- 

 age done by insects within the limits of our 

 country is not less than three Jiundred millions 

 of dollars annually, and that Kapoleon at the 

 summit of his prosperity, never inflicted more 

 damage on a nation than the lilliputian Insect 

 army inflicts on the United States; and well 

 does he remark : "If an enemy were to cause a 

 small part of the injury which results each year 

 from the depredations of even one of our insect 

 enemies, the whole country would resound with 

 a clamor for the suppression of the invaders." 

 We have learned how to conquer the potato- 

 beetle, tlie caterpillar and curculio, the 

 canker and currant worms, the aphis and red 

 spider, and the rose-slug ; we can prevent the 

 depredations of the borer and the codling moth, 

 and may we not yet hope to devise means to 

 prevent the terrible scourge of the grasshopper 

 in the west, and the phylloxera on our vines. 

 Indomitable perseverance is the price of re- 

 ward, in the acquisition of noble ends, and 

 this is especially true in regard to the culture 

 of fruits. 



Accustomed as we are to the " canker 

 worm" ui Massachusetts, we as generally 

 protect our orchards from its ravages as we do 

 our fields from the invasion of cattle ; the 

 efforts of Ellwanger and Barry, Dr. Hull and 

 others, are crowned with an annual crop of 

 plums, by a little care, at the proper time, in 

 shaking off the trees and picking up the drop- 

 ping fruit ; the canker worm is prevented by 

 the application of tar and oil, or printers' ink, 

 for a few weeks ; the caten)illar by the use of 

 the hand or brush for a few hours ; and the 

 borer by a few moments' examination ; and 

 these examples are illustrations of tlie princi- 

 ples which I would enforce, and of what may 

 be done ; and were we to fail in this, it is 

 through neglect of the means which have been 

 placed in our hands. 



" Thus God (Jelights to teach the lesson ever, 

 That our success depends on our endeavor." 

 "The Study of entomology, as teaching us the 

 habits of insects, both useful and injurious, is 

 of the highest importance, in connection with 

 the culture of plants and fruits. And we, 

 therefore, rejoice in the spirit of enterprise 

 which has of late been awakened on the sub- 

 ject. "Were we to be told that there was no 

 method to prevent tlie depredations of insects, 

 we should lie down in despair ; but we do lit- 

 tle better while we do nothing to prevent 

 them, and if men would give their minds to 

 the subject most of the evils of which we 

 complain might be prevented." 



The foregoing we extract from the annual 

 address of Marshal P. Wilder, delivered be- 

 fore the Ameriran Pnmolofjical Society, at it.s 

 fifteenth session, held in Chicago, Illinois, on 

 the 8th, 9th and 10th of September, 187.5. 

 Although it contains but a brief and very 

 general outline of the subject, it amply illus- 

 trates its vast importance, and furnishes an 

 endorsement of the very highest authority. 

 Doubtless the incursions and deiiredations of 

 insects are often unavoidable and unlieralded ; 

 but it is too apparent for successful denial, 

 that in many instances their redundancy and 

 destructiveness are the results of sheer neglect, 

 indiftereuce, or willful ignorance— an igno- 



rance which, under other circumstance, would 

 border on criminality. It is becoming just as 

 important for the farmer or fruit-grower to 

 study the periods, transformations and destruc- 

 tive habits of insects as it is to observe the 

 times and seasons for plowing his ground, 

 planting and cultivating his crops ; and the 

 neglect of the former may ultimately be as 

 detrimental to his pecuniary and social inter- 

 ests as a neglect of the latter. To be fore- 

 warned is to be forearmed ; and, therefore, if 

 the matter has not been already anticipated, 

 it ought now to elicit attention in this, tlie 

 beginning of the flowering and fruiting of the 

 year. ^"^ He thai hath ears to hear, let Mm /imr." 



^ 



ADAPTING MEANS TO ENDS. 

 There may be sound sense in the old "saw" 

 — "A JacA- of all trades is a master of none ;" 

 but on that score there is " another side to the 

 question;" as well as in many others ; as may 

 be gathered from the following, which is going 

 the ' rounds' of the weekly press, and which we 

 clip from the columns of a cotemporary as 

 apropos to the present times, when there are so 

 many idle young men, simply because there is 

 no employment to be obtained in their special 

 crafts. 



A Little Good Advice. 



" I am always sorry for a man who knows 

 how to do but one thing. I have often seen 

 such men. I gave ten dollars to one who could 

 sneak and write five or six languages, and 

 translate beautifully ; but in the middle of a 

 hard winter he could not get a living. I know 

 another man who had preached twenty-five 

 years, till his throat failed him, and he used 

 to go around looking very blue and sad, until 

 people pitied him and got up donation parties 

 for him, because he was good for nothing ex- 

 cept to preach. I knew a lady who had taught 

 school for twenty years, till she was a poor, 

 nervous, broken-down woman, and didn't 

 know how to make a dress for herself. Now 

 boys and girls, every real man should know 

 how to do one thing well. Evei-y wise farmer 

 has a principal crop ; but he has always alittle 

 something else to live on. Don't put your 

 money all in one pocket. If you want to get 

 along right well, learn one sort of work to get 

 along by, and all sorts of work to get a living 

 with when your one sort gives out ?" 



That there are so many in the world who 

 are willing to do only one thing, does notarise 

 so much from the fact that they can do only 

 one thing, as from the fact that they loill do 

 only one thing or nothing, and if they can find 

 no employment at that one thing, they feel 

 themselves perfectly justifiable in waiting in 

 listless idleness untU" that one thing "turns 

 up" again. 



It is questionable whether that kind of peo- 

 ple are the kind of stuff that is needed for the 

 social development of this planet, nor yet for 

 its commercial, mechanical, agricultural or 

 economical development. Such people never 

 master their situations. 



Whilst it is eminently desirable that a young 

 man, in acquiring a knowledge of a trade, pro- 

 fession, or other occupation, should concentrate 

 his whole mind, will and energy into it, in or- 

 der that he may become proficient therein ; 

 still, when that fails him through financial dis- 

 aster, or from other causes, without a reason- 

 able prospect of a return of prosperity in the 

 future, he should be willing to devote the same 

 energies towards the ac(iuisition of some other 

 calling, whereby he may be relieved from a life 

 of idleness and dependence. It is true, that 

 there are some occupations in which he could 

 not expect to become sufllciently proficient to 

 obtain a livelihood on account of his advanced 

 age— yet, there are many other callings in 

 which any man under the age of thirty could 

 succeed in if he had the will to do so, and in 

 some even if he were ten or fifteen years older. 

 There are plenty of men in the world, who, if 

 they were suddenly drojiped down, as if from 

 a balloon, on to an uninhabited island or con- 

 tinent, could readily adapt themselves to their 

 isolated circumstances, wanting only the ma- 

 terial out of which to carve their self-support, 

 and this "adaptation of means to ends" oup;ht 



to characterize their course and conduct in the 

 midst of society at any time. 



Interview many of the thriftiest and most 

 successful business men of tlie country, and 

 you will be astonished how many of them are 

 following occupations different from those they 

 started out with in early life — and this is 

 especially the case with the citizens of towns 

 and cities. Many men, if they cannot find em- 

 ployment at the business they have chosen as 

 their worldly occupation, instead of turning 

 their hands to something else, are content to 

 relapse into idleness and worthlessness. 



Many foil sometimes, from personal defi- 

 ciency half a dozen times before they succeed 

 — at different occupations, even in prosperous 

 times — and the most that tliis may demon- 

 strate is, that they had mistaken their calling ; 

 but none succeed who do not "try again." 

 The absurdity of young men waiting two or 

 three years for "something to turn up" in 

 their occupations favorable to their chances of 

 obtaining employment, has no parallel among 

 those possessing sane minds on the subject. 

 These errors of judgment are often the results 

 of wrong thinking upon this subject, through 

 which a conclusion is come to that one honest 

 occupation is more respectable than another, 

 and that eventually their services will be so- 

 licited without any trouble to tliemselves. 

 This is underestimating their surroundings 

 and overestimating themselves. 



There are circumstances under which they 

 must ask before they can expect to receive; 

 they must seek if they desire to f.nd, and they 

 must knock before it will be opened, and this 

 must be repeated again and again, even at the 

 expense of being importunate. 



If all the willfully idle men were wiped out 

 of existence the world and society would still 

 rotate the same as when they constituted a 

 part of them. The world owes no man any- 

 thing V)ut what he, by his active energies, may 

 be able to get out of it by his labor. 



Therefore, if you are a farmer, a lawyer, a 

 doctor, a mechanic, or any other calling, go to 

 work on something, if only it is honest and 

 useful. If you can't get anything to do at 

 mathematical instrument making, perhaps you 

 may be able to succeed at stoue-breaking, or 

 something else, or you never can stand ac- 

 quitted by the world or human society. 



For The Lanca.ster Farmer. 



DECORATING FLOWER GARDENS. 



From the middle of May' to the middle of 

 June is the proper season in our latitude to 

 decorate flower gardens with Ijedding plants, 

 ever-blooming roses, etc. — which are pur- 

 chased growing in flower pots — and the roots of 

 the gladiolus, tuberose, dahlia, etc. The species 

 and varieties of bedding plants are very nu- 

 merous, diversifled and beautiful ; so every 

 taste or whim can be satisfied. The flower 

 class have blooms of many colors, and the 

 plants are of many sizes and habits of growth ; 

 some are very brilliant and showy in blooms ; 

 others are very fragrant, though less showy ; 

 another class have charming, sweet-scented 

 leaves. So in making selections it may be best 

 to have a portion of every class for diversity's 

 sake, and a pleasing whole. The class with 

 ornamental leaves are also of numerous spe- 

 cies and varieties, and very diverse in appear- 

 ances. None of them are sweet-scented, but 

 they make a beautiful and long-lasting show. 

 Tliere are three styles of arrangement. In the 

 promiscuous arrangement many kinds are set 

 upon tlie same beds ; so mixed that the tall- 

 est are farthest oft" the edges, and the most 

 dwarf-like nearest to the outer edges ; all so 

 set as to make a pleasing contrast and good 

 show. Tlie sweet-scented species are so set 

 as to give fragrance to the whole. The ribbon 

 style is much adapted to the ornamental 

 leaved class, making rows of different colors. 

 They make a long-lasting and beautiful show, 

 but have no sweet pertumes about them. Tlie 

 self style consists in making many small beds 

 in a cluster, or near to each other ; each bed 

 is set wholly with one species or variety, and 

 every bed different from the others. For ex- 



