PREFACE. V 



fruit and forestry attacks it is unnecessary to particularize, but 

 amongst the latter there was a serious instance of attack of the 

 Alder Clearwing Moth caterpillars in one locality (see first paper 

 in following report), which, as far as I am aware, is the first 

 recorded instance of serious damage from this infestation in this 

 country. 



Besides enquiry as to home crop infestations, there has also 

 been an unusual amount of application from British residents in 

 the Colonies regarding infestations on Colonial crop produce, as 

 Sugar and Cocoa in the West Indies, Tea in the East Indies, 

 Oranges in various places ; and also regarding English or Euro- 

 pean attacks, of which the presence has spread, or been specially 

 noticeable elsewhere, amongst which the destructive Flour Mill 

 Moth, EpJtestia kiihniella, has unfortunately a foremost place ; 

 and other infestations of various kinds, especially to Vines, have 

 been brought under notice. To these, in some cases, I was able 

 to attend from personal knowledge, in others (where requisite), I 

 availed myself of skilled assistance. 



From the observations sent in from agriculturists and fruit- 

 growers, it will be seen that serviceable and well-founded 

 attention to measures for prevention of insect ravage are steadily 

 increasing. The observations from the Toddington Fruit 

 Grounds are an excellent example of this advance. In some 

 cases, doubtless, serviceable information is being also afforded by 

 the new system of rural lecturing on " Economic Entomology " ; 

 but in some, I think, I am almost bound to say, as I am so 

 frequently honoured by being referred to by our agriculturists, 

 that I think they would do wisely to weigh the advice given 

 before acting on it. 



We have amongst our lecturers men skilled in the various 

 branches required, good entomologists, and also possessed of the 

 requisite agricultural knowledge and experience to apply this 

 serviceably; but, in some cases, the two latter items are so 

 totally wanting that I have the evidence in my hands that to 

 follow the advice given would have been ruinous or impossible. 

 Probably in these cases a year's study on a farm, so as to allow a 

 knowledge to be acquired of action of manures, effects of different 

 methods of ploughing, and of different kinds of implements, of 

 various actions of chemical dressings in various circumstances, 

 and of the ordinary treatment and rotation of crops, as well as 

 the important consideration that details uf cultivation which 



