194 TlMEHRI. 



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Cochran for his paper. Many of them knew that weeds 

 and grasses were pests to cultivation, but he thought the 

 worst enemy of all was the moth-borer. 



The Hon. Mr. Jones also spoke of the same pest saying 

 that in the last two or three years they had sustained 

 more damage from this than any other plague. 



The President agreed that the moth-borer did a great 

 deal of damage to young canes. He knew of fields 

 thriving well in December, and by February or March 

 entirely gone. It seemed to attack particular localities 

 and particular estates ; on some the damage was trifling 

 while on others it was very serious. 



Prof. Harrison spoke of the shot-borer, which he had 

 seen at the Botanic Gardens. In regard to the fungus 

 of which so much had been heard from Barbados, it was 

 not new as he had known it there for ten years, but he 

 never saw it attack canes that were quite healthy. 



Mr. Cochran thanked the members for the kind manner 

 they had dealt with his paper. 



Mr. Vyle wished to bring forward a motion to have a 

 reading desk for newspapers placed in the Reading 

 Room to prevent these being monopolised by one person. 

 The President said this would be better as a recommen- 

 dation to the Directors and requested Mr, Vyle to make 

 his suggestion in a letter to the Hon. Secretary. 



The President then read his paper on "The cost of 

 sugar production in British Guiana."* 



The Hon. E. C. Luard said he was sure they were all 

 obliged to Mr. Duncan for his valuable paper, and he 

 believed that the whole planting community would thank 

 him when they saw it in print. To have the cost of 



♦ See page 114. 



