The Lancaster Farmer. 



Prof. S. S. BATHVON, Editor. 



LANCASTER, PA., SEPTEMBER, 1877. 



Vol. VL No. 9. 



THE TOBACCO BUG. 



The " I'listiilatftl .soUlicr-buf;," [EwidusUs 

 pustulatus.) This iiisfcl belongs to the order 

 IlKMl'TKUA, or "half-wings," so called be- 

 cause llie wins; covers are more or less both 

 opaiiue and transparent, from the half or two- 

 thirds of the basal liorlioii beini; thick and 

 leathery, and half or one-third of the apical 

 portion being membranaceous. .Speciint;ns of 

 these insects, their eggs and their young, 

 were given nio by Mr. Kennedy, of Salisljury, 

 subsequent to the niceling of the Tobacco 

 Growers' Society in .July last. On compari- 

 son I find these "insects identical with speci- 

 mens in my collection, which I obtained 

 twenty years ago, and before tobacco became 

 a plant of conmion culture in Lancaster 

 county. I <lo not distinctly remember tlu^'ir- 

 curastances under which 1 obtained them, but 

 I am ([uite sure I did not find them on tobac- 

 co plants. These insects belong to what are 

 properly called "bugs;" the chinch-bug, 

 Sfjuash-bug and bed-bug, belonging U> the 

 same order. In June last I took two speci- 

 mens on tlic young and succulent Caralin 

 plants near McCall's Ferry, ou the Susque- 

 hanna, and I also observed one on a black- 

 berry bush; and as there are several species of 

 them, some of which I have always found on 

 the blackberry, it is quite probable that the 

 specimens in my collection were found on that 

 plant. It is not at all remarkable that an in- 

 sect shoidd leave its native plant and show a 

 partiality for a different plant, especially when 

 its last preference is more juicy, and has be- 

 come a subject of ciUtivation and solicitude. 

 We have e.Kamples of that peculiar character- 

 istic in the "Colorado potato-beetle," in the 

 "codling moth," in the "striped apple tree- 

 borer," in the "curculio," and many others. 

 But, it is remarkable that the same insect 

 should feed both on vegetation and on other 

 insects; for if we can credit a writer in Field 

 and Forcsty a scientific journal published in 

 Washington city, a species belonging to this 

 genus (Ettsi-hisl'es 2)uncticep.f) was found in the 

 very act of plunging its dagger into the soft 

 body of the larvie of the "Colorado beetle," 

 and sucking its sul)stance, as men would tlie 

 pidp of the grape. It is well-known that the 

 "spined soldier-beetle," {Arma :fpinnsa) which 

 belongs t<5 the same family, and is generically 

 allied to this insect, is in the habit of preying 

 upon the potato-beetle in its larva state, and 

 I have had many .specimens sent to mo that 

 had been captured while they were .so engaged. 

 But these suctorial insects do not only punc- 

 ture vegetation and animals, and tlien pump 

 out their vital fluids, but they also secrete a 

 poison and infuse it into the wound, which 

 causes the plants to wilt, and is perhaps more 

 injurious to the plant than the simple punc- 

 tures of the bugs. On one occasion an indi- 

 vidual belonging to this order (a species of 

 Pirates, an account of which we have record- 

 ed more in detail elsewhere, in an article on the 

 "Stings of Insects") penetrated one of my fin- 

 gers with its piercer, which for some minutes 

 gave me intense pain, causing the persjiiration 

 to stand in drops on my body, followed by nau- 

 sea, nervousness, and a giddy stupor. On an- 

 other I captured a ferocious "tiger-lieetle" 

 and put it into my collecting bottle with other 

 insects. About fifteen minutes thereafter 1 

 captm-ed a small "pirate-bug," (Firates) a.m\ 

 on introducing it into the bottle I found that 

 the tiger had torn all the other insects to pieces, 

 and Wiis "niasterof the situation." As soon as 

 the pirate entered the tiger sprang upon him; 

 but he made no special resistance, merely e.x- 

 tending his jointed piercer and introducing it 

 into the soft part of the tiger between the 

 head and the thorax, and in much less time 

 than it has taken me to tell it, the tiger be- 



came powerless, trembled a little in his limbs, 

 and was dead as a door-nail. 



It would be difficult to suggest a remedy 

 for the destruction of these, and perhaps 

 more difticult to apply one, if it were known. 

 As they absorb tbi; inner fluids of the plants, 

 an external poisoning of them might liave lit- 

 tle effect on the bugs, moreover, they sire tol- 

 erably active, and run under the leaves when 

 molested, or fall to the ground, and the nui- 

 ture insects can very deftly manipulate their 

 wings when there is occasion to use lUein. 

 The eggs are deposited on the tender ends of 

 the plants, but they are too small to elicit 

 easy observation. Perhaps liquid Paris green, 

 a tobacco decoction, or strong soapy .solution, 

 thrown on the i)lants by an atomizing ma- 

 chine might be effectual. F would have more 

 confidence in crushing them between the noz- 

 zles of a, largo pair of wooden forceps, as is 

 done to the "squash-bugs." 



^ 



THE CUCUMBER. 

 (Cueutnis SttHvus,} 



"A seraph was sick with the colic one day, 

 And, weeping, leaneil over the moon ; 



The tears, as they fell, tloateJ lii^htly away 

 Ou the possamer piulons of June. 



But one, as it drifted along in the damp. 



Sank wearily down to the earth ; 

 As Iremhliug it lay, 'twas embraced by a cramp 



And the cucumber blushed into birth." 



The two most prominent and most distin- 

 guishing characteristics of the cucumber are, 

 its great antiquity and the universality of its 

 dissemination. At what period in the world's 

 history the mythological event occurred 

 which is celebrated in the foregoing stanzas, 

 has perhaps never been chronologically re- 

 corded, or if so, no doubt the record was 

 burnt with the great Alexandrian library ; 

 and it is just as undoubted that there are 

 some sanitary or hygienic curmudgeons in the 

 world who honestly believe that if all the cu- 

 cumbers and cucumber seeds in the aforesaid 

 world had been destroyed with the library 

 aforesaid, a greater blessing on the human 

 family would have been entailed than can 

 possibly grow out of their cultivation and use, 

 as popular as they seem to be, unless some 

 other use for them can be devised, than con- 

 verting them into pickles and salads. 



In the Mosaic history it is recorded that the 

 children of Israel made a free use of cucum- 

 bers during their sojourn in the land of Egypt, 

 and that they murmured ui their journeyings 

 through the wilderness on account of the ab- 

 sence of this edible gourd ; and perhaps this 

 was, symbolically, (me of the "flesh-pots" 

 after which they so ardently and so religiously 

 longed, during those remarkable peregrina- 

 tions. 



As regards cucumber salad, somebody has 

 facetiously remarked that they should be taken 

 from the vines when they are about six inches 

 long, cleanly washed, pared, sliced, salted, 

 peppered, vinegared and (;reamed, and then — 

 tluown into the pig-swill, especially in such 

 localities where many indiscreet parents and 

 children and fevers and agues abound. 



Cucumbers are suppo.sed to have been intro- 

 duced into England and on the continent of 

 Europe from th* Levant, but the precise date 

 when, has not been carefully recorded. It is 

 known th.at they were highly esteemed by the 

 Romans, and that thei/ were very successful in 

 their culture. But then it does not follow 

 that it would be a special virtue in us, of the 

 nineteenth century, to esteem what the 

 Romans esteemed, because tliis might l>e 

 proving more than is desirable in modern 

 economies. The Romans highly esteemed 

 gladiatorial contests, bull-fights, wild-beast 

 victimizations, and many other barbarous 



enormities ill-.suited to modern civilization, 

 but it is hoped we do not. 



The Emperor Tiberius is said to have had 

 cucumbers for his table, fresh from the vines, 

 all the year round, by the employment of 

 artificial heat. Now, Tiberius was the second 

 Emi)cror of Home, and succeeded Augustus 

 in the fourteenth year of the Christian era ; 

 and the significance of this fact, illustrates at 

 what an early period in history hot-house 

 culture was practiced, and with what success. 

 We are sometimes vain enougli to think that 

 we know everything, can do everything, and 

 have originated everything ; but when we 

 refer to the pages of history, we discover that 

 much of our knowledge is only second- 

 handed. 



The cucumber is a very prominent article 

 of food in many of the Oriental countries, but 

 whether they are eaten raw, pickled, boiled or 

 fried, the records do not say. It mu.st I)e con- 

 fes.sed that there is an aroma or fragrance 

 about cucumbers that is grateful to the 

 olfactories and the taste of nearly everybody, 

 even if they do not habitually partake of them 

 as food, but the nutriment they contain is 80 

 Umited, that no man or anim.al (except per- 

 haps some noxious insect) could ever get fat 

 eating them. 



In England thus vegetable has been a great 

 favorite from its first introduction into that 

 country, and at this day large tracts of land 

 are devoted to its cultivation to supply the 

 demands of the market. John Bull loves his 

 beef, his ale, and his cucumbers ; and the last 

 named perhaps as an appetizing condiment, in 

 order to enable him to eat more beef; we 

 mean the well-to-do John Bulls, for in Eng- 

 land as in American there must be many who' 

 cannot get enough of beef to appease their 

 appetites, without resorting to stimulants to 

 increase the demand for " more." The 

 " Oliver Twists" of society surely do not need 

 them. 



Even the poet Cowper thought it not be- 

 neath the invocation of his muse, to sing the 

 praises of " the green and prickly-coated 

 gourd," and has written some verses on its 

 growth in winter, which in minuteness of 

 detail shows that he had a comprehensive 

 knowledge of the subject that would be 

 worthy of the study of the professed gardener. 

 Notwithstanding the fruit is pleasant and 

 agreeable to the taste, and "as cool as a cu- 

 cumber," has become a significant and well 

 understood every day expression, yet, phy- 

 sicians maintain that it has little or no nutri- 

 tious value, and that to most persons, especi- 

 ally those of delicate constitutions, it is 

 absolutely unhealthful, and is often attended 

 with unpleasant, if not injurious eflects. The 

 cultme of the cucumber— in season— is too 

 well understood in onr own counti7 for us to 

 attempt to venture any instruction on that 

 point at this time. But we question whether 

 much is done in this country in cultivating it 

 out of season ; and yet, there is more money 

 in the latter culture than there is the former, 

 especially in London and Paris, and no doubt 

 it would be the same in New York and Phil- 

 adelphia. As an illustration of this, we may 

 state that in the fruit stalls of London, during 

 the month of March, cucumbers readily bring 

 a guinea a dozen, whereas in the month of 

 August they may be obtained in abundance 

 for a sixpence, and sometimes as low as a 

 penny, per dozen. 



We confess that our interest in the cucum- 

 ber is m.ainly historical and scientific ; not be- 

 cause we don't like them, however, but because 

 they don't like us ; and, therefore, these " cu- 

 curnbcr cogitations," suggested by aproti-acted 

 " cucumber time," make a partial approxima- 

 tion to that standpoint, leaving the question 

 of their hot, or green-house culture, to some 



