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THE AMERICAN ENTOMOLOGIST. 



GOOSEBERRY AND CURRANT WORMS. 



We caiulidl)' confess that we are discouraged. 

 Nearly a year ago we published a full account 

 of the difl'erent Potato Bugs to be found in the 

 United States, showing that there are about a 

 round dozen of perfectly distinct species attack- 

 ing the Potato plant — gome burrowing in the 

 stalk, but most of them devouring the leaves — 

 some infesting the plant botli in the larva and 

 in the perfect state, others in the perfect state 

 exclusively — and most of them to be found all 

 over the Union, while one of them is almost en- 

 tirely contined to the Eastern States, and an- 

 other is at present only to be met with in the 

 West, though it is gradually advancing with 

 giant strides towards the devoted East. In that 

 article we further pointed out the practically 

 very important fact, that dificrent Potato Bugs 

 having different habits must be attacked in dif- 

 ferent modes; and tliat what is excellent sauce 

 for the goose will often turn out to be very poor 

 sauce indeed for tlie gander. Yet — wonderful 

 to relate! — in spite of all our efforts to dissemi- 

 nate correct knowledge on this subject, several 

 newspapers have continued to publish ipara- 

 graphs through the summer of 18G9, showing 

 how "THE Potato Bug" has done thus and so 

 in such and such a neighborhood ! They might 

 just as well publish as interesting and satisfac- 

 tory news, that "THE sheep" took the first pre- 

 mium at such and such a Wool-growers" Conven- 

 tion, or that " THE horse " won the race at the 

 last meeting of the Honorable Jockey Club of 

 Swiudleton. 



What then, under the circumstances, are we 

 to do? Shall we give up in despair and discon- 

 tinue the Entomologist, simply because it is 

 demonstrated by hard dry facts, that such a 

 paper is urgeutl)^ needed, and that the popular 

 ignorance on the subject of insects urgently re- 

 quires to be enlightened? Far from us be such 

 faint-heartedness ! We acknowledge that we 

 And a great many very "hard cases" among 

 our adult population — men who maintain 

 stoutly, that it is beneath the dignity of the 

 human species to pay any attention to these in- 

 flnitesimally minute little creatures, which are 

 every day picking our pockets of untold mil- 

 lions of dollars. But we have great faith in the 

 rising generation. School Superintendents arc 

 now beginning to recognize the fact, that Natu- 

 ral History is not only a very pleasing, but 

 practically a most important study ; and that as 

 insects outnumber tenfold all the other animals 

 in the world put together, so they annually in- 



flict upon us ten times as much pecuniary dam- 

 age as all the other animals in the world put to- 

 gether. Hence the very legitimate inference is 

 drawn, that of all the various departments of 

 Natural History, Entomology, viewed in the 

 light of dollars and cents, is of the greatest 

 practical importance; and but for the want of 

 competent teachers and suitable text books, it 

 would no doubt be introduced at once, as a reg- 

 ular branch of study, into all our best schools. 

 Wc would suggest, however, to those who have 

 such matters under their official charge, that 

 where there is a demand there will always sooner 

 or later be a supply; and that the very best way 

 to create a demand for good Entomological Text- 

 books, suited to the comprehension of children, 

 is to disseminate among children a taste for the 

 more pleasing and pojjular branches of Ento- 

 mology. It is for the express purpose of creat- 

 ing such a taste in the public mind, that our 

 Magazine has been set on foot; and in spite of 

 our well-known modesty, we cannot hel|) 

 throwing out a hint here, that worse text-books 

 than the American Entomologist might on a 

 diligent search be found in some of our public 

 schools. But we must stop here. The pub- 

 lisher gravely admonishes us, that if our little 

 work were generally introduced into all our 

 Public Schools, or even into all our High 

 Schools, it would be utterly impossible for him, 

 with his pi-esent typographical facilities, to sup- 

 ply the demand for it. Such an idea, if practi- 

 cally carried out, would certainly ruin him ; for 

 he would then have to purchase, at a vast ex- 

 pense, one of the Patent Forty-Cylinder Print- 

 ing-presses, that throw off 1,5.39.141 impressions 

 every five minutes. 



We have determined, therefore, upon a cool 

 consideration of the state of the case, not to be 

 daunted or discouraged, because a few benighted 

 individuals will still loersist in talking about 

 " THE Potato Bug," instead of telling us in so 

 many words whether they mean the Colorado 

 Potato Bug, or the Ash-gray Blister-beetle, 

 or the Three-lined Leaf-beetle, or whatever 

 the particular species of Potato Bug may 

 be that is destrojing their potato-vines. 

 We have thrown our bread upon the waters; 

 we hope and believe that, after many days, or 

 at all events after many years, it will be found 

 and appreciated by the world. In the mean- 

 time, with unflagging resolution and unabated 

 confidence, we shall proceed with our task. We 

 have already given a complete history, illus- 

 trated by figures, of the different bugs that afflict 

 the Irish Potato. We have done the samcihing 



