414 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



Sept. 



cry infringement, humbujEf, and the like. I am 

 also well aware that most of these things come 

 from ignorant and irresponsible parties, who 

 know nothing of the principles of infringement, 

 or the laws that govern Patent Rights. 



If Mr. B. had made a full quotation from my 

 book, page 99, it would not have seemed quite so 

 improbable as he tried to make it appear in his 

 article of June 29. I did say, if a bee-keeper 

 should commence with a strong, healthy colony, 

 in the spring, furnish them with a large or non- 

 swarming hive, supply them with the comb al- 

 ready made, prevent the male bees and the 

 drones from hatching, and should it be a good 

 honey season, with good management, the apiari- 

 an might expect two or thi-ce hundred pounds of 

 honey. 



It is true, all these advantages could not be 

 had perhaps at one time in fifty. Should I have 

 stated these great results could be attained every 

 year in any kind of hive, it would have been fol- 

 ly indeed. I have made no assertion either in 

 book or circular but what I can substantiate. 



The quotation I made from an article written 

 by Mr. Quinby, published in the Eural New- 

 Yorker oi Dec. 18, 18o8. 



Certainly, it does not seem to tickle Mr. B. any 

 better than Mr. Q.'s straws did in the Farmer of 

 May 18, simply because the quotation was certi- 

 fied to by me. Mr. Quinby goes on to say that he 

 had a large number of the Langstroth hives in 

 use, and that two-thirds of the bees built their 

 combs in every possible direction without any re- 

 gard to the frames, making them, so far as mova- 

 ble frames were concerned, no better than the 

 common box hive ; also stating that both time 

 and money had been thrown away by those who 

 had purchased the hive, and recommended the 

 common hive in its stead. Is this wonderful hive 

 any better than it was in 18-38 ? There has been 

 no additional patent taken out since to make it 

 better. What Mr. B. calls a humbug quotation 

 may be found in the Itural New-Yorker in the 

 precise words I have made use of. It is verj' ev- 

 ident that one of two things must be the case — 

 either that Mr. B. is a humbug or Mr. Quinby 

 has made two contradictory statements in refer- 

 ence to the same thing. I think that Mr. Q. is 

 too well versed in bee culture and entomology 

 generally, to be guilty of anything of the kind. 

 As Mr. B. has never seen one of ray complete 

 hives, I would refer him to Mr. J. W. Merrill, 28 

 Devonshire Street, Boston, who will give him a 

 circular explaining it in full. K. P. K.IDDER. 



Burlington, Vt. 



P. S. The reason why I have not replied before 

 is that I have had my own business to attend to, 

 instead of that of my neighbors'. 



Remarks. — We cannot longer continue this 

 discussion, as there is little in it to benefit the 

 general reader or the bee-culturist himself. 



Cure for Ring Bone. — A correspondent asks 

 for a cure for "Ring Bone." Here is a good one, 

 that has been tried, and is sure for all sprains, 

 bruises, blows, etc. : 



Dissolve 1 oz. camphor in 8 oz. of spirits of 

 wine ; add 1 oz. of oil of turpentine, 1 oz. of 



spirits of sal ammoniac, ^ oz. of oil oreganum, 

 one big table-spoonful of liquid laudanum ; rub 

 well in with the hand for a quarter of an hour, 

 four times a day, and a cure will be effected. — 

 Ohio Valley Farmer. 



For the New England Farmer. 



THE APHIS, OR PLANT LOUSE, ON 

 WHEAT. 



Within three or four days, we have received 

 several specimens of wheat heads covered with a 

 little plant louse, which is described below by Mr. 

 F. G. Sanborn, who is now engaged in the prep- 

 aration of the new edition of Harris on Insects. 

 It does not appear that they have yet injured the 

 wheat. 



Andover, July 31, 18G1. 



Mr. Editor : — The grain crops throughout the 

 State are now being greatly injured by insects of 

 two different classes, both occurring in extraordi- 

 nary numbers, althoisgh one of them is a very 

 common species, and may be found in smaller 

 quantities in any year, beneath stones and upon 

 various succulent plants. 



The first, which has been aptly styled the "ar- 

 my-worm," is said, by Dr. Fitch, of New York, 

 to be the larva or caterpillar of the Leucania itni- 

 pundata, (see the Country Gentleman of July 25, 

 p. 66, for Dr. Fitch's interesting communication 

 on this insect.) It is of a dark brown color, al- 

 most black, with three yellowish longitudinal 

 stripes on the upper side, and two bands of the 

 same color just above the legs, which are sixteen 

 in number ; all of the stripes are much more dis- 

 tinct toward the extremities ; the head is rounded 

 and beautifully marbled or honeycombed with 

 dark lace-work on a yellow ground, and from the 

 top of the head two curved black lines run down 

 the face, diverging as they approach the mouth. 

 I have had a number of specimens sent me from 

 Fall River and vicinity, which vary from eight 

 lines to an inch in length, and I have reason to 

 suppose that none of them have arrived at their 

 full growth. On superficial examination it ap- 

 pears to be naked, but on holding it between the 

 eye and the light a few short hairs will be seen 

 thinly scattered over the body, and rather more 

 thickly upon the head. They began to attract 

 attention in this State about the first of this 

 month (July,) and rapidly devoured almost every 

 green thing in their path, some fields being en- 

 tirely swept by them. ♦They appeared to march 

 in a compact mass, when passing from one field 

 to another, preferring a gateway to crawling 

 through a fence or wall, beginning to move about 

 noon. By digging a ditch about the field which 

 it is desired to protect, the inner side being as 

 nearly as possible perpendicular, and eighteen or 

 twenty inches in depth, the worms, after falling 

 into it, cannot, if the soil be at all loose, crawl 

 up the perpendicular side, and must either die of 

 starvation, devour each other, or be killed in va- 

 rious ways, of which we have several to choose 

 from. Dr. Durfee, of Fall River, informs mo 

 that he destroyed them by dragging a heavy stone 

 roller over them, and crushing them, also by lay- 

 ing a quantity of shavings along the ditch and 

 setting them on fire. Others have poured upon 



