﻿PACKARD.] 
  THE 
  NOKTHERN 
  ARMY- 
  WORM. 
  701 
  

  

  steadily 
  over 
  every 
  obstacle, 
  wherever 
  their 
  instinct 
  leads 
  them. 
  Unlike 
  

   the 
  cut-worm, 
  which 
  moves 
  by 
  night 
  singly, 
  from 
  field 
  to 
  field, 
  and 
  

   secrete 
  themselves 
  by 
  day-time 
  amid 
  the 
  roots 
  of 
  the 
  plants 
  they 
  attack, 
  

   the 
  army-worm 
  feeds 
  in 
  the 
  forenoon 
  and 
  evening 
  generally, 
  scattered 
  

   over 
  fields 
  of 
  grain 
  or 
  grass, 
  either 
  eating 
  the 
  leaves 
  or 
  cutting 
  off 
  the 
  

   heads 
  and 
  letting 
  it 
  fall 
  on 
  the 
  ground. 
  They 
  will 
  thus 
  cut 
  across 
  the 
  

   field, 
  wantonly 
  mowing 
  off 
  the 
  heads 
  of 
  the 
  grain. 
  In 
  this 
  way, 
  in 
  

   Plymouth 
  County, 
  Massachusetts, 
  they 
  destroyed 
  an 
  acre 
  and 
  a 
  half 
  of 
  

   wheat 
  in 
  one 
  night, 
  and 
  then 
  attacked 
  a 
  corn-field 
  in 
  the 
  same 
  way. 
  

  

  All 
  young 
  insects, 
  or 
  those 
  in 
  the 
  larval 
  stage, 
  are 
  exceedingly 
  vora- 
  

   cious 
  ; 
  they 
  eat 
  surprising 
  quantities 
  of 
  food. 
  When 
  these 
  army-worms 
  

   are 
  shut 
  up 
  together 
  without 
  food, 
  they 
  will 
  quickly 
  devour 
  each 
  other. 
  

   We 
  give 
  some 
  extracts 
  to 
  illustrate 
  what 
  we 
  have 
  said, 
  from 
  the 
  New 
  

   England 
  Farmer 
  and 
  Boston 
  Cultivator. 
  A 
  writer 
  in 
  Danvers, 
  Mass., 
  

   says 
  : 
  " 
  They 
  were 
  seen 
  in 
  great 
  numbers 
  through 
  the 
  entire 
  field 
  of 
  

   several 
  acres, 
  climbing 
  up 
  the 
  stalks 
  of 
  the 
  barley, 
  eating 
  the 
  blades 
  

   and 
  cutting 
  off 
  the 
  heads 
  of 
  the 
  grain. 
  The 
  day 
  after 
  these 
  worms 
  

   were 
  discovered, 
  the 
  barley 
  was 
  mowed 
  in 
  order 
  to 
  preserve 
  it, 
  when 
  

   they 
  dropped 
  to 
  the 
  ground, 
  throwing 
  themselves 
  into 
  a 
  coil, 
  a 
  habit 
  of 
  

   the 
  insect 
  when 
  disturbed. 
  Many 
  of 
  them 
  soon 
  commenced 
  a 
  march 
  

   for 
  the 
  neighboring 
  fields 
  and 
  gardens, 
  while 
  others 
  blindly 
  pushed 
  for- 
  

   ward 
  a 
  column 
  across 
  the 
  highways 
  over 
  a 
  stone 
  wall, 
  where 
  they 
  were 
  

   crushed 
  by 
  travelers 
  on 
  the 
  road. 
  But 
  the 
  main 
  body 
  marched 
  to 
  the 
  

   adjoining 
  gardens 
  and 
  inclosures, 
  where 
  the 
  proprietors 
  were 
  waiting 
  

   to 
  receive 
  them 
  in 
  their 
  intrenchments, 
  which 
  had 
  been 
  thrown 
  up 
  a 
  

   foot 
  wide 
  and 
  two 
  feet 
  deep. 
  The 
  worms, 
  as 
  they 
  fell 
  in 
  their 
  advance 
  

   into 
  the 
  trenches, 
  were 
  assailed 
  in 
  various 
  ways 
  by 
  eager 
  combatants, 
  

   some 
  spreading 
  over 
  them 
  lime, 
  tar, 
  or 
  ashes, 
  while 
  others 
  resorted 
  

   vigorously 
  to 
  pounding 
  them. 
  In 
  this 
  way, 
  countless 
  numbers 
  of 
  them 
  

   were 
  destroyed. 
  The 
  rear 
  guard, 
  composed 
  principally 
  of 
  those 
  of 
  

   smaller 
  growth, 
  kept 
  in 
  the 
  field, 
  where 
  they 
  were 
  picked 
  up 
  by 
  a 
  troop 
  

   of 
  fifty 
  young 
  red- 
  winged 
  blackbirds. 
  I 
  also 
  noticed 
  the 
  robins 
  feeding 
  

   on 
  these 
  vermin." 
  Again 
  : 
  " 
  In 
  adjoining 
  lots 
  they 
  were 
  commencing 
  

   their 
  devastation 
  upon 
  the 
  corn, 
  turnips, 
  cabbages, 
  weeds, 
  and 
  grass. 
  

   They 
  leave 
  the 
  grass-ground 
  completely 
  clean 
  and 
  white, 
  so 
  that 
  it 
  has 
  the 
  

   appearance 
  of 
  having 
  been 
  scorched 
  in 
  the 
  sun. 
  The 
  cabbage 
  and 
  turnips 
  

   they 
  destroy 
  by 
  eating 
  the 
  tender 
  parts 
  of 
  the 
  plants, 
  while 
  they 
  attack 
  

   the 
  corn 
  by 
  descending 
  the 
  spindle 
  and 
  concealing 
  themselves 
  in 
  large 
  

   numbers 
  among 
  the 
  leaves 
  where 
  the 
  corn 
  is 
  to 
  make 
  its 
  appearance. 
  

   Corn 
  thus 
  attacked, 
  looks 
  wilted 
  and 
  drooping. 
  In 
  some 
  hills, 
  the 
  

   stalks 
  were 
  stripped 
  of 
  all 
  their 
  leaves. 
  There 
  were 
  no 
  worms 
  upon 
  the 
  

   potato-tops, 
  though 
  they 
  have 
  killed 
  all 
  the 
  grass 
  to 
  the 
  borders 
  of 
  the 
  

   field." 
  

  

  The 
  damage 
  done 
  to 
  crops 
  in 
  Western 
  Massachusetts 
  alone 
  was 
  esti- 
  

   mated 
  to 
  amount 
  to 
  half 
  a 
  million 
  dollars. 
  In 
  the 
  Middle 
  and 
  Western 
  

   States, 
  the 
  army-worm 
  appears 
  in 
  numbers 
  in 
  certain 
  years, 
  and 
  then 
  

   are 
  rare 
  for 
  some 
  years. 
  In 
  Southern 
  Illinois, 
  in 
  1818 
  or 
  1820, 
  they 
  

   were 
  more 
  numerous 
  than 
  in 
  1861. 
  They 
  also 
  appeared 
  in 
  1825, 
  1826, 
  

   1834, 
  1841. 
  In 
  1842 
  they 
  were 
  about 
  as 
  nuinerous 
  as 
  in 
  1861. 
  In 
  1849 
  

   they 
  were 
  numerous 
  in 
  Southern 
  Illinois. 
  In 
  1856 
  they 
  occurred 
  in 
  

   small 
  numbers. 
  In 
  1855 
  it 
  appeared 
  in 
  Northern 
  Ohio 
  ; 
  in 
  1854 
  it 
  

   abounded 
  in 
  Boone 
  County, 
  Missouri, 
  and 
  in 
  1865, 
  1866, 
  and 
  especially 
  

   in 
  1869, 
  in 
  portions 
  of 
  the 
  State. 
  In 
  1871 
  it 
  occurred 
  in 
  Illinois, 
  and 
  in 
  

   1872 
  in 
  Iowa, 
  Wisconsin, 
  Ohio, 
  and 
  Kentucky, 
  Illinois, 
  Missouri, 
  and 
  

   Tioga 
  County, 
  New 
  York.— 
  :(Riley.) 
  Thus 
  it 
  is 
  well 
  known 
  and 
  estab- 
  

   lished 
  in 
  the 
  South 
  and 
  West, 
  so 
  that 
  when 
  it 
  appeared 
  in 
  New 
  York 
  

  

  