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for the year 1862, contains an article, similar in design and 

 character to the essay of Mr. Plagg, being extracts from a 

 pamphlet written by Mr. De Tschudi of Switzerland. It 

 fully confirms, and more than confirms, Mr. Flagg's declara- 

 tions in reference to the actual and possible ravages of insects, 

 and the counter-active energies of birds. I wish that I had 

 time to give you here, even a brief resume of the important 

 facts and considerations, contained in the article. I must 

 confine myself to two short items, which I condense from 

 De Tschudi. 



Frederick the Great of Prussia, was very fond of cherries, 

 and so were the sparrows. Provoked by repeated losses of 

 his favorite fruit, he set a price on their heads, and forthwith 

 all Prussia began to pop away at the poor friendless birds. 

 In two years' time the sparrows had mostly disappeared, as 

 well as many others of the feathered race, who were fright- 

 ened off by the continuous fusilade. Meanwhile the cater- 

 pillars and other insects multiplied to an alarming extent, 

 making short work not only of the royal cherries, but of al- 

 most everything else that grew, — until the great king was 

 obliged to confess that he had no power to alter what has 

 been ordained by a far greater King. He retracted his order, 

 and imported sparrows from other countries, at considerable 

 cost, to supply the place and perform the functions of the 

 murdered innocents. 



We are told here that the cuckoo feeds on hairy caterpil- 

 lars — a singular taste certainly, but he likes them and digests 

 them comfortably. As he eats all the time, he manages to 

 get down nearly 200 in the course of a day. Supposing that 

 half of them are females, a single cuckoo daily destroys in 

 embryo more than 42,000 destructive caterpillars. Is he no 

 benefactor ? 



That plants under tillage are greatly benefitted by a fre- 

 quent stirring of the ground in which they stand, though 

 there may be no weeds to destroy, and that this holds true 

 even in times of severe drought, is an assertion with which I 



