No. 151.] 521 



in cargoes of wheat. The Privy Council sat, day by day. anxiously 

 debating upon this calamity. Expresses were sent to the offices of 

 the customs to examine wheat cargoes; despatches were written to 

 the Ambassadors, to France, Austria, Prussia, and America, for in- 

 formation. The documents collected on this subject by the Privy 

 Council, filled two hundred printed pages, octavo. And no precise 

 information of any great utility was obtained. 



The most important treatise of modern times, on insects, are those 

 of Donovan, who has given not only those of Europe and America, 

 but the Oriental insects, also; Latriellie's work. Rev. Mr. Kirby's 

 and Leach's are valuable. The theories of Fabricius have become 

 unfashionable, and Linnaeus has been reinstated on this subject of 

 Entomology. 



Dr. Underbill. — The grasshoppers are sometimes very destructive 

 of vegetation, especially in a dry time. This I have noticed on 

 Long Island. Previous to their appearance, a large white grub is 

 noticed in great numbers, which sometimes eats off the roots of grass 

 in meadows so entirely that the surface of the meadow may be rolled 

 up like a carpet. This occurs early in June. Soon afterwards, the 

 grasshoppers appear and the white grubs disappear. The best reme- 

 dy for this evil of grasshoppers, is the Long Island one — turkies. 

 They collect as many turkies as they require, turn them out, and the 

 land is soon cleared; the quantities consumed by the turkies is as- 

 tonishing, and what are not eaten are frightened away. But the 

 most effectual mode with which I am acquainted, is the plowing late 

 in fall, turning out to the frost the insects in the soil. I did so with 

 the rose-bugs, and I froze them almost all, and millions of larvae of 

 other insects with them. Among them the black grub, that enemy of 

 our corn crops. And in the spring, I put on the land 50 or 60 bushels 

 an acre of fresh slaked lime; shell lime is best. A good dressing of 

 unleached ashes is very good to destroy the striped yellow bugs which 

 injure the cucumber and watermelon vines. The number of useful 

 insects, and some of them are eminently so, is but small. Bees and 

 some others, convey the fructifying pollen to flowers which require 

 it. The great body of insects are obnoxious. 



The reason why our western country is not much injured by in- 

 sects, is, the rapid', strong growth of plants in a virgin soil. Birds, 

 too, are more abundant. Here, the martins, swallows and wrens are 

 very useful in destroying insects; and when plants or trees are not 

 of a vigorous, healthy growth, insects pounce on them as their prey. 

 We ought to court the habitation of birds about "our houses. The 



